Youths, who covered themselves from head to toe in silver paint to become “manusia silver” (silvermen), as part of their act to make a living, laugh as they ride on the back of a truck in Jakarta, Indonesia, March 31, 2021. (Photo by Willy Kurniawan/Reuters)

Residents of Ezbet Hamada in Cairo's Mataria district gather to eat Iftar, the meal to end their fast at sunset, during the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Cairo, Egypt on April 6, 2023. (Photo by Mohamed Abd El Ghany/Reuters)

A devoteetakes a holy dip in the River Ganges on Ganga Dussehra festival in Prayagraj, India, Tuesday, May 30, 2023. Hindus across the country celebrate Ganga Dussehra by worshiping the River Ganges, which is considered as the most sacred and the holiest river. (Photo by Rajesh Kumar Singh/AP Photo)

A poster of former President Donald Trump sits in the lobby as guests arrive for the Oakland County Republican Party Lincoln Day Dinner on June 25, 2023 in Novi, Michigan. Trump is scheduled to speak at the dinner. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Kids jump off the breakwater into the ocean ahead the Fourth of July holiday in Gloucester, Massachusetts, U.S., July 3, 2023. (Photo by Brian Snyder/Reuters)

A woman walks depicting a scene from the Iranian national epic poem “Shahnameh” in Tehran on August 5, 2025. (Photo by Atta Kenare/AFP Photo)

A man carries his wife on his back as they make their way with their luggage along a flooded tunnel to catch their train, after heavy rainfall hit Jinhua, Zhejiang province, China, July 21, 2015. (Photo by Reuters/China Daily)

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)