Chinese stocks hit new low

Chinese shares retreated from a two-day rally to fall below the 2,800 mark on Tuesday, hitting its lowest since December 2014.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index plunged 6.42% to close at 2,749.79 points, while Shenzhen declined by 6.96% to close at 9,483.55 points, Xinhua reported.

The ChiNext Index, the NASDAQ-style board of growth enterprises, dived 7.63% to close at 1,994.05 points.

Total turnover on the two bourses increased, standing at 523.08 billion yuan ($79.8 billion).

Losers outnumbered gainers by 979 to 22 in Shanghai and 1,526 to 32 in Shenzhen.

Altogether, nearly 1,000 stocks on the two bourses lost by the daily limit of 10%.

The Shanghai index opened lower and remained firmly in negative territory during the morning session, before dropping 3% shortly after the midday break.

It further plunged to a rock-bottom price of 2,749.79 yuan, 6.42% lower.

The ChiNext Index, the NASDAQ-style board of growth enterprises, was the most battered, which dived over three percent before the midday break and steeply plunged towards 2,000-mark points during the afternoon session.

Losses swept across all sectors, with the sub-index related to textiles, furniture and aviation suffering the most on Tuesday.

The oil sector lost its sheen after a two-day winning streak, taking its cue from the turbulent global oil prices, which resumed a decline after a fleeting recovery.

PetroChina, China's oil giant, dived 4.71% and closed at 7.08 yuan.

The market sentiment remains tense, though more liquidity is being pumped into the capital market to maintain a steady interest rate.

According to the People's Bank of China (PBOC), 360 billion yuan (around $55 billion) was injected into the financial system to ease the liquidity strain before the Chinese New Year holiday.