Chinese markets see broad-based losses, led by national defense names

China’s equities markets continued to fall broadly on Thursday, with national defense stocks the worst performers.

The Shanghai Composite Index shed 2 percent, or 56.51 points, to finish at 2768.02, as heavily-weighted financials and small and mid-cap stocks posted strong losses.

The smaller Shenzhen Component Index declined by 2.50 percent to 8780.56 points, while the Nasdaq-style ChiNext enterprise board slumped by 2.06 percent to finish at 1510.09.

The China Academy of Building Research, the largest and most diverse research institution in China's building industry, saw its shares drop by the daily maximum of 10 percent to close at 26.90 yuan (US$3.95).

ChuanCai Securities noted that the recent fluctuations in the A-share market were mainly contributed to investors’ worries about Washington's unilateral trade war moves.

The broker said that the military sector suffered sharp declines for two consecutive trading days due to reports the US has added another 44 Chinese national defense companies to the sanctions list.