Chinese Equities Struggling Early On

Chinese equities have come under notable pressure during early trade, with the CSI 300 losing ~2.0%. The downtick in margin balances lodged at the Shanghai exchange and withdrawal of the PBoC's late June seasonal liquidity injections over the last couple of days will be applying some modest pressure, but aren't enough to explain the early sell off in isolation. Some have noted that the perceived "period of safety" ahead of the CCP's 100^th anniversary (which was celebrated on Thursday) has now passed, which could be applying some pressure. Elsewhere, Sino-U.S. tensions continue to bubble. Thursday saw U.S. Commerce Secretary Raimondo note that the U.S. "will make sure that the Chinese play by the rules, protect IP, allow our markets, our companies to access that market." Elsewhere, the U.S. State Department flagged China's rapid build-up of nuclear forces as "concerning" and suggested that Beijing should engage to reduce "the risks of destabilising arms races."