Fears over the coronavirus have triggered a sharp fall in Chinese shares as markets reopened after the Lunar New Year holiday.
The Shanghai Composite index fell nearly 9% before recovering slightly, while commodity prices also slumped.
Manufacturing, materials, and consumer goods companies are among the hardest hit, as healthcare shares soar.
The fall came despite China's central bank announcing new measures to ease the impact of the outbreak.
The People's Bank of China unexpectedly lowered short term interest rates as part of its attempts to relieve pressure on the economy from the rapidly spreading virus.
It is also pumping an extra 150 billion yuan ($22bn; £16.3bn) into the economy, a move aimed at ensuring there is enough liquidity in the banking system.
In total, the central bank will inject 1.2 trillion yuan into the financial system on Monday, the majority of which was already planned. The liquidity boost is the largest single day addition on record.
The bank said it could make more cash available throughout the week.
Global markets have been rattled by the epidemic in recent days, with the US S&P 500, on Friday notching up its worst week since October.
Chinese financial regulators have forecast the impact on the country's already slowing economy will be "short term".
China saw economic growth of 6.1% last year - the slowest in around three decades, in part because of its prolonged trade war with the US. A partial trade deal easing tensions was struck earlier this month, but most tariffs remain in place.
China is working to deal with the virus, with more than 17,000 confirmed cases and 361 deaths.
China's stock markets are dominated by retail investors - that's non-professional, usually small-scale buyers. They own a whopping 80% of shares on the Shanghai market. That means they have a profound effect on market movements, and what they're telling us with the selloff today is that they're scared. But it's also important to remember Chinese investors are playing catch up - this is the first time mainland China's stock markets have opened for more than a week, so it is not surprising they've taken a tumble.
Still, it's a nuanced picture - and not a case of every company's shares crashing. It is a stock market divided by sectors. So shares in companies that sell healthcare products have actually gone up by some 10% - while companies that are in the manufacturing, real estate and construction sector have fallen sharply.
The key question now is how bad the effect of coronavirus will be on China's economy - and as a result, on the fortunes of its companies. The truth is we just don't know. It is difficult to gett reliable data from China; typically during the Lunar New Year period it is challenging to gauge how many people are working, or producing things. This year - as one analyst told me - "economists are flying blind" because the data coming out of the country is scant, patchy and unreliable at best. Already, many research houses are slashing first quarter growth forecasts for China. We are essentially in the dark at the moment about the health of China's economy - which is worrying because of how connected it is to the global economy.
Analysts say the impact of the virus - which has left major cities in full or partial lockdown - could harm growth if it lasts for a prolonged period.
China's travel and tourism sectors have already taken a hit over an unusually quiet Spring Festival break, while cinemas were forced to close to try to contain the virus.
Meanwhile, numerous factories have suspended production while companies have instructed employees to work from home
Foxconn, Toyota, Starbucks, McDonald's and Volkswagen are just a few of the corporate giants to have paused operations or shuttered outlets across China.
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