BEIJING: Chinese equities plunged Tuesday led by declining heavyweights and profit taking, paring gains in the previous trading week.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index was down 3.45 percent, or 115.14 points, to close at 3,223.53 points.

The Shenzhen Component Index declined 2.9 percent, or 401.38 points, to close at 13,453.28 points.

In Tuesday's trading, losers sharply outnumbered gainers by 838 to 50 in the larger Shanghai Stock Exchange, and by 765 to 46 in the smaller Shenzhen exchange.

On the Shenzhen-based ChiNext board, only one of the 28 shares rose.

Heavyweights met set backs. PetroChina, China's biggest oil producer, declined 2.98 percent to 13.68 yuan (2 US dollars). Sinopec, the country's largest oil refiner, plunged 3.88 percent to 12.15 yuan.

Banking shares fell across the board. The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, China's biggest commercial lender, shed 2.74 percent to 5.32 yuan. Bank of China. slipped 2.3 percent to 4.25 yuan, while China Construction Bank dropped by 2.9 percent to 6.1 yuan.

China's banking regulator yesterday asked the country's commercial banks to better manage risks and avoid year-end volatility in lending. Financial institutions with low capital adequacy ratio and no practical remedy plans would face restrictions in overseas investment, branch increases and business expansion.

Medicine shares fared worst after the National Development and Reform Commission, China's top economic planning body, and other ministries jointly issued a document Monday requiring medical institutions to gradually abolish mark-ups in drug prices.

Southwest Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. dropped by the daily limit of 10 percent to 11.42 yuan and Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd declined 7.78 percent to 13.39 yuan.

Steel shares bucked the trend with Baosteel, China's biggest steel maker, up 3.39 percent to 8.23 yuan and the Inner Mongolia Baotou Steel Union Co. Ltd. rising 7.02 percent to 5.18 yuan.