US stocks have seen their worst first half of a year since 1970, as concerns grow over how steps to curb inflation will affect economic growth.
"If the US Federal Reserve continues hiking rates the stock market will react quite negatively," Dan Wang, chief economist at Hang Seng Bank China, told the BBC. At the same time the technology-focused Nasdaq Composite lost almost 30%, marking its largest percentage drop for the first half of a year.Major stock market indexes outside the US have also fallen sharply this year.
Earlier this week, the bosses of three of the world's biggest central banks warned that the era of moderate inflation and low interest rates had ended.