Beijing’s multibillion-dollar intervention over the past month helped stop a stock market slide that knocked down the Shanghai composite index by 30 percent from its June 12 peak.

Hong Kong shares hit a year low yesterday despite a “V” shape rebound in mainland equities amid concerns over an expected rate hike in the United States.

Investors will also be looking for clues about when the U.S. central bank will begin to raise interest rates for the first time in years when the Federal Reserve releases minutes from its July meeting at 2 p.m. ET.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index declined 3.42 percent to close at 3,664.29 points.

“Even as the government has the will to put a floor under the market, whether it has the ability to do so is in doubt”, said Hou Yingmin, analyst at AJ Securities, citing adversities including an anaemic economy, capital outflows and ugly technical patterns.

The PBOC uses such injections to keep liquidity ample as the government tries to underpin a faltering stock market and drains funds from the banking system to support the yuan. (CSF) to buy stocks on behalf of the government after Shanghai shares collapsed in June.

Events in China continued to roil global markets amid fears the value of the yuan will continue to erode.

The devaluation last week triggered falls in other Asian currencies such as those of Australia New Zealand Indonesia Singapore and Taiwan fueling fears of a currency war.

Tokyo stocks opened 0.14 per cent down as speculation by investors that the US Federal Reserve would hike rates receded.

Oil fell further in Asia ahead of a US inventory report that will help gauge demand in the world’s top economy. Brent crude for October dropped 25 cents to US$46.91 a barrel. The 1.26 billion shares it bought in Agricultural Bank were worth 4.19 billion yuan at Wednesday’s market price. The broader All Ordinaries Index is losing 59.60 points or 1.11 percent to 5,320.20.

Airports of Thailand slipped 2.24 percent to 262 baht while Siam Commercial Bank rose 1.06 percent to 142.50 bhat.

– The Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE) has set up a registry for the “emerging industries companies board”, sources told the newspaper, adding it had also hired staff and brought in equipment. Keppel Corp also dropped as much as 2 per cent to its lowest in close to four years.

The materials index was down 1.36 percent, weighed down by Du Pont and Dow Chemicals. The Hang Seng is now down 1.8% for the year.

– Wellington rose 0.69 percent, or 39.27 points, to 5,750.03. Shares of importers and firms with high US dollar-denominated debt have been under pressure along with Chinese airlines who face higher fuel bills following the devaluation.