Behind the global stock market plunge of 2016

Global equity markets have been on a rollercoaster ride since the opening sessions of 2016. The violent lurch lower in stocks was initially triggered by fears an economic slowdown in China, the world's second largest economy, was spinning out of control.
But it was the spectacular collapse in oil prices which really lent impetus to the January sell-off.
"Fear, not economic fundamentals, sparked the frenzied sell-off in China as the new year got under way which then spread to global markets and the oil price slide has compounded the pessimism," said Beijing-based economist Chen Chen, at the Economist Intelligence Unit.
China is in the midst of a shift from an economy reliant on exports and an infrastructure building binge to one based on economic consumption and as a result asset prices around the globe are being revalued.
The world's largest consumer of metals and second biggest buyer of oil posted its lowest annual growth in a quarter of a century in 2015.

By the numbers: The Great Sell-off
◾The MSCI All-Country World Index, which measures major developed and emerging markets, fell into a bear market on January 20, with its decline from early last year now totaling more than 20 percent.
◾At the time of writing, the MSCI Global index was down 7.6 percent since the beginning of the year.
◾China's main indexes have lost $1.8 trillion in 2016.
◾The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index saw its lowest close since Dec 1 2014 on January 26 and is down 22 percent.
◾The CSI300 index of the largest listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen is down 21 percent.
◾The world's main benchmarks, Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude oil sank to their lowest levels since 2003 on January 20.
It is not the slowdown itself that is posing the problem, say economists, but a lack of clarity over how the slowdown is being managed.
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