A cut in Chinese interest rates and reserve requirements last night helped stem the slide in its stockmarkets this morning, after the Shanghai Composite index fell yesterday by 7.6% to its lowest level since December. Markets elsewhere rallied on Monday, as some investors decided that talk of an abrupt Chinese slowdown was overdone, and others concluded that even if it isn’t, the collateral damage will not be disastrous. It is true that if Chinese demand plummets, the pain will not be evenly spread elsewhere. Big commodity exporters, including Australia and Brazil, are likely to suffer most, having prospered selling metals and minerals to the Chinese. Countries like Japan and South Korea, which supply high-tech components to Chinese industry, are also exposed. Conversely, Britain and Germany are much less vulnerable; their exports to China account for only around 5% of what they sell abroad each year. America could be somewhat more exposed, particularly its West Coast.