Chinese Official Removed Following Monetization Change PR That Sent Gaming Stocks Tumbling

According to five sources reported on by Reuters, a Chinese official in charge of the publishing unit of the Communist Party's Publicity Department has been removed from their position. Feng Shixin is reported to have been removed from their post, though no official announcement has been made as of yet.

The removal, which sources say happened last week, comes on the heels of new regulations proposed to limit spending and daily login initiatives in gaming, a move that immediately led to gaming giants like Tencent and NetEase losing billions in market value.

Since the initial reveal of these proposed changes, China's National Press and Publication Administration backtracked a bit and announced that they would "earnestly" review public opinion on the proposed regulations.

The hit to stocks came as China eyes a slowing economy and a rare admission that there could be more trouble ahead.