China’s entire equity market was shuttered within half an hour of opening after falling 7 per cent on further currency weakness as government rescue efforts failed to deter the tide of sellers.

今日人民币汇率继续走低，中国股市开盘不到30分钟就下跌7%，整个股市提前关闭，政府的救市努力未能对潮水般的卖盘起到吓阻作用。

China’s stock market meltdown and currency depreciation have spooked international investors in a replay of last summer’s rout that reverberated around the globe. So far this year — just four days — the bluechip CSI 300 index is down 12 per cent.

中国的股市暴跌和货币贬值令国际投资者惊慌不已，他们担心去年夏天震动全球的市场动荡重演。今年迄今——才四个交易日——成份股为蓝筹股的沪深300指数(CSI 300)已下跌12%。

Newly minted circuit breakers, introduced and first tripped on Monday, kicked in again on Thursday after the CSI 300 fell 7 per cent. Trading was halted for 15 minutes after the index lost 5 per cent, but as stocks continued to fall the full-day closure was triggered.

今日，沪深300指数下跌7%后，新推出的熔断机制再次被触发。该机制是在本周一推出的，当天就被首次触发。今日沪深300指数下跌5%后，股市暂停交易15分钟，但恢复交易后继续下跌，触发第二档熔断线，导致全天交易提前结束。

Investors were rattled by further weakening of the renminbi, said Wang Jun, analyst at China Securities Co in Beijing. “It was a panicked response to the forex market,” he said. “Accelerating exchange-rate depreciation could lead to liquidity problems. Valuations can’t help but take a pounding.”

北京中信建投证券分析师王君表示，投资者对人民币继续走弱感到很紧张。他说：“这是外汇市场引发的恐慌反应。不断加快的汇率贬值可能会导致流动性问题。估值不可避免地会受到冲击。”

The renminbi fell to its weakest level in nearly five years on Thursday, with capital outflow pressure still heavy even after more than a year of nearly uninterrupted outflows. The renminbi was 0.6 per cent weaker on Thursday morning at 6.5928 per US dollar after falling by roughly the same amount on Wednesday.

周四，人民币汇率跌至将近五年来的低点，资本外流压力依旧沉重，尽管中国已经经历了一年多的几乎不间断的资本外流。周四早盘，人民币汇率再跌0.6%，至1美元兑6.5928元人民币，周三的跌幅与此大致相同。

Policymakers appear uncertain about whether to wade back in to buy stocks with state funds or to stand back. On Tuesday, the “national team” of state-owned financial institutions appeared to re-enter the stock market after remaining on the sidelines since late August.

中国的政策制定者似乎拿不准是应该重新着手干预、用国家的资金买入股票，还是应该置身事外。周二，由国有金融机构组成的“国家队”似乎再度进场。去年8月底以来，“国家队”曾一直在场外观望。

Goldman Sachs estimated in September that the government had spent Rmb1.5tn ($234bn) to support the stock market in July and August, when the main index was down by as much as 45 per cent from its late-June high. The “national team” owned at least 6 per cent of tradable market capitalisation in the Shanghai and Shenzhen exchanges at the end of the third quarter.

高盛(Goldman Sachs)去年9月估计，中国政府在去年7月和8月共花费1.5万亿元人民币（合2340亿美元）托市，当时主要股指从6月下旬的高点下跌了多达45%。去年第三季度末，“国家队”至少持有沪深两市可交易市值的6%。

On Wednesday, the stock market had clawed back some lost ground after state media said the securities regulator would extend a ban on share sales by large shareholders. After the trading halt on Thursday, the regulator published new permanent rules restricting share purchases by large shareholders, as well as by corporate management and directors.

周三，中国股市在官方媒体报道称证券业监管部门将延长大股东禁售令后收复部分失地。周四股市交易终止后，中国证监会(CSRC)发布了上市公司大股东、董事、监事和高级管理人员减持新规。

Starting January 9, large shareholders can sell a maximum of 1 per cent of a company's shares every three months. They also must disclose stake-cutting plans 15 days in advance. The China Securities Regulatory Commission said the new rules should help to stem panic-selling.

新规自1月9日起施行，大股东每三个月最多可减持公司股份的1%，而且必须提前15个交易日披露减持计划。中国证监会表示新规应有助于遏制恐慌性抛售。

Forex traders on Tuesday reported signs that the People’s Bank of China, acting through large state-owned banks, was drawing on its foreign exchange reserves to support the renminbi.

外汇交易员周二报告称，有迹象显示中国央行通过大型国有银行采取行动，动用外汇储备来支撑人民币。

But renminbi’s deline continued on Wednesday, and authorities now appear reluctant to devote further resources to rescuing the stock market. The securities regulator said in August that the government would halt large-scale stock purchases, though it did not rule out occasional intervention.

但人民币在周三依然下跌，而且当局现在似乎不愿再投入更多资源来拯救股市。去年8月，中国证监会表示政府将暂停大规模购股，尽管不排除会偶尔进行干预。

Thursday’s trading halt will raise fresh doubts about the newly implemented circuit breaker, which came into force only this week but has already been used twice. Critics say the mechanism may be amplifying losses, as investors rush to exit their positions for fear of being trapped in the event of a trading halt.

周四的提前收市将令新实施的熔断机制受到新的质疑。该机制本周才开始实施，但迄今已用了两次。批评人士表示，熔断机制可能会扩大损失，因为投资者急于退出自己的头寸、生怕万一交易暂停自己会被困在场内。

On WeChat, the widely-used messaging and social network platform, a joke circulated: “Many people ask, ‘What is the circuit breaker mechanism?’ Actually it’s like this: You bring Rmb 3,000 to play mahjong, but you lose it all in half an hour. The game is paused for 15 minutes so you can pop downstairs to the ATM to withdraw another Rmb5,000. You come back and quickly lose that too. Then the winner says, 'Your luck is too bad, let’s just end the game for today’.”

在使用者众多的通信和社交网络平台微信(WeChat)上，流传着这样一个段子：很多人问熔断机制是什么意思？ 简单解释就是：你带3000元去打麻将，半个小时被打光了，立马休战15分钟，去楼下银行ATM取了5000元，上来又打光了，然后说“今天你手气太差，散了算了”。