Shares extend losses

Shanghai stocks continued to fall on Tuesday, dropping below 3,200 points dragged down by defense, military and communications shares.

The Shanghai Composite Index dropped another 0.51 percent to close at 3,198.59 points. The Shenzhen Component Index fell 0.97 percent to 10,124.66 points and the blue chip CSI300 index closed 0.16 percent down at 4,019.01 points.

Turnover on the two major bourses shrank sharply to 733.01 billion yuan (US$258 billion) from 804.21 billion yuan on Monday. Stocks of 78 companies listed on the A-share markets tumbled by the daily limit of 10 percent.

The national defense and military sector led the fall. SSC Offshore & Marine Engineering Group slumped 9.53 percent, and China Harzone Industry Corp also dropped sharply by 8.33 percent.

Media shares also posted losses. Shenzhen Capstone Industrial Co and Sichuan XunYou Network Technology Co both took a nosedive by the 10-percent daily cap.

Leshi Internet Information & Technology Corp fell by the daily limit after opening to be a new eight-month low.

Leshi issued a notice on Monday evening announcing the pledge of 500,000 shares — or 0.01 percent of the company — owned by major shareholder Jia Yueting, were lifted on April 16. 

Leshi once again issued a reminder that it is at risk of being suspended from listing, as its net assets in 2018 are expected to be negative. Its 2018 annual report will be released on Friday.

Communications shares, electrical equipment companies and the automobile sector also fell.

Shares related to pork, however, performed strongly, after the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said March posted a "double decline" in the numbers of both pigs and sows on hand,the biggest and fastest decline in nearly a decade.

It is expected pork prices will rise amid this lower supply throughout the year, and the price of live pigs in the fourth quarter will break through the record high in 2016.