China's brokerage industry experiences downturn, leading to layoffs and pay cuts for analysts due to market slump and stricter regulations.

China's brokerage industry is facing a significant downturn, leading to layoffs and pay cuts for analysts. Following years of expansion, firms are now retrenching due to a prolonged market slump that has reduced trading commissions and stricter limits on research analysts' publications. This has led to a reduction in meal and travel budgets and the loss of lucrative positions. In the past, securities firms were aggressively hiring and offering compensation of up to $1.4 million to top analysts.