China’s 200 million-strong army of retail investors was supposed to help the market turn a corner. Instead, it has become a source of weakness.The country’s $9.7 trillion stock market experienced a rapid boom and bust starting late September,

Asian shares have mostly gained after China’s central bank released plans for supporting the stock market through share repurchases by companies and major shareholders. Beijing also reported that the Chinese economy slowed further in the last quarter,

China’s Finance Ministry is set to hold a media briefing Saturday, reigniting expectations that Beijing is readying fiscal stimulus to boost the economy.

China’s central bank has launched two new funding schemes worth 800 billion yuan to stabilize the stock market and boost liquidity for financial institutions.

China's central bank kicked off two funding schemes on Friday that will initially pump 800 billion yuan ($112.38 billion) into the stock market through newly-created monetary policy tools. The People's Bank of China (PBOC) spelt out operational details of the swap and relending schemes first announced in late September,

Twenty-one banks to extend loans for stock buy-backs and stake hikes as the part of the 300 billion yuan scheme unveiled late last month.

China's abrupt and ferocious stock market rally has slammed some of the country's biggest hedge funds, forcing them to hastily cover short positions and take losses on their bets in the heavily regulated derivatives market.