A stockmarket rout is set to add to the losses of China’s banks, already grappling with slowing profit growth from a surge in bad loans and a series of interest rate cuts, by curbing robust growth in their fee-generating business.

World stock markets have perked up as a meeting of the European Central Bank raised hopes for some type of action to ease the continent’s debt and banking crisis.

World stock markets perked up today after a weekend meeting of the leaders of France and Germany provided a promise of action on Europe’s debt crisis.