China's Stocks Dive To Lowest Close Since 2014

Stocks plunged in Asia on Tuesday as global oil prices slid and investors worried that China's currency would continue to lose value. European markets also fell as oil prices slumped again.

From Shanghai, NPR's Frank Langfitt reports for our Newscast unit:

"The Shanghai Composite was down more than 6 percent, hitting the lowest level in about 14 months. Japan's Nikkei and Hong Kong's Hang Seng indexes were both down around 2 percent. Panic selling came as crude oil dropped back below $30 a barrel in Asian trading.

"Another factor that drove down stocks is a fear among Chinese that as their economy slows, the value of their currency, the yuan, will continue to drop. More Chinese are moving money out of country and converting it into stronger currencies, such as the dollar.

"Last year, a record $1 trillion flowed out of China, according to data from Bloomberg Intelligence. That's more than seven times the amount that left the country in 2014."

Many of the sharpest losses came in the afternoon, when a bout of late selling pulled the rug out from under the market. Hundreds of companies, representing a range of sectors, saw their stocks fall by the rules-limited 10 percent, reports China Daily.