The 2015 Chinese stock-market crash began in June 2015, when the Shanghai Composite started a sharp collapse after reaching a major local peak.
The Shanghai Composite had risen dramatically from mid-2014 into June 2015. Speculative buying, margin financing, and participation by individual investors helped drive the surge. The index reached an intraday high of 5,178.19 on June 12, 2015.
After that peak, prices fell rapidly. Authorities responded with measures including restrictions on some share sales, support for share purchases, suspension of many listed stocks, and investigations into market activity. These actions reflected the importance of equity-market stability to China’s financial system and public confidence.
The turbulence continued into the summer and later periods, including a severe global market reaction in August 2015. The episode is sometimes described as one continuous crash, but the June fall, the August sell-off, and later volatility were separate phases. The Shanghai Composite’s movement also did not exactly match the performance of every Chinese share index or overseas-listed Chinese company.