Some are in it just for the money, others to help buy a meal. Then there are those who trade for fun or to spend time among friends. Millions of investors – pensioners, security guards, high-school students – dominate China's stock markets, conducting about 80 percent of all trades. Retirees gather in brokerage houses dotted around China also to enjoy some company and savour the air conditioning on hot days. Some start as young as 13, trading from home with an eye on future careers in finance. Winning isn't guaranteed. This year, among the most turbulent in China's financial history, its stock markets more than doubled in the six months to May, only to crash amid concerns that growth in the country, which makes everything from cars to steel, is slowing faster than previously thought. (Photo by Aly Song/Reuters)

Red Bull's Max Verstappen celebrates with champagne on the podium after winning the Monaco Grand Prix in Monte Carlo on May 28, 2023. (Photo by Stephane Mahe/Reuters)

Construction workers carry bricks on their heads near the country's parliament building in Naypyitaw November 11, 2014. Yangon lost its status as Myanmar's capital in 2005, after the former military junta carved a new seat of government from a parched wilderness some 380 km (236 miles) to the north and called it Naypyitaw (“Abode of Kings”). (Photo by Damir Sagolj/Reuters)

Trainers from Tianjiao Special Guard/Security Consultant Ltd. Co. engage trainees dressed in swimming suits as they crawl on the beach during a training session in Sanya, Hainan province January 8, 2012. (Photo by CHINA DAILY/Reuters)

Potters colour earthen lamps at a workshop ahead of the Hindu festival of Diwali in Amritsar October 15, 2014. Earthen lamps are sold in large numbers during Diwali, the annual Hindu festival of lights, as people use them to decorate their homes. (Photo by Munish Sharma/Reuters)

Indian actress, singer and the winner of the Miss World 2000 pageant Priyanka Chopra starred as Victoria Leeds in the 2017 remake of “Baywatch”. (Photo by AP Photo/Paramount Pictures)

China goalkeeper Zhou Jiaying blocks a shot against Japan during a preliminary round women's hockey game at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Sunday, February 6, 2022, in Beijing. (Photo by Petr David Josek/AP Photo)