China's tiger roars over 4,000 with record $51bn of shares traded

China's main stock index crashed through the 4,000 barrier for the first time yesterday, fuelled by demand from individual investors despite warnings that a stock market bubble is being created.

Shanghai's benchmark CSI 300 index soared 2.2 per cent to close at 4,072.58, and the value of shares traded on the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges hit a record $50.9bn (£25.7bn), exceeding the $43.9bn that changed hands on the New York Stock Exchange on 25 May. Among the stocks to rise to the 10 per cent daily limit were China International Marine Containers and Tsingtao Brewery.

Despite caution among institutional investors, individuals continue to pour money into the markets. More than 300,000 people a day opened brokerage accounts in China last week. As the country's wealth grows, everyone from students and farmers to business people and pensioners are choosing to put their savings into the stock market rather than bank accounts.

The CSI 300, which tracks yuan-dominated A shares listed on China's two exchanges, has risen 206 per cent in the past year. This compares with the 3.06 per cent that commercial banks offer. The index has jumped 14 per cent since 6 May, sparking fears of a stock market bubble. Last week, the former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan warned that the market could undergo "a dramatic correction". The Ministry of Education is advising students not to get involved in stock trading as they would be unable to bear any losses.

Meanwhile, the Port of Ningbo in China, the country's second biggest after Shanghai and the fourth largest in the world, is one of the latest state-owned firms planning an initial public offering of its shares.

Tong Meng Da, chief economist and a member of the management committee, said yesterday that Ningbo Port Group Limited, a state enterprise involved in joint ventures with Western firms, will seek a listing for part of the company on the Shanghai and Hong Kong exchanges next year. Ningbo will join 14 Chinese ports which have already been taken to market - another step in the country's economic liberalisation. Last year, Ningbo Port enjoyed revenues of 4.6bn renminbi (£300m) and profits of 1.5bn renminbi (£98m). With traffic at more than 300 million tonnes in 2006, it is ranked fourth in the world by total tonnage, much of it bulk commodities to feed China's demand for raw materials, including oil.