Fosun International has abandoned the purchase of an Israeli insurance company, in the first apparent sign that the recent detention of the Chinese conglomerate’s chairman has had an impact on its investment strategy.

Fosun, one of China’s best known companies globally, said in a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange on Wednesday that it was terminating the deal announced last June for it to buy a controlling stake in Phoenix Holdings, an insurance and financial group, from Israel’s Delek Group for 1.8bn shekels ($462m).

Fosun issued a separate statement linking the cancellation to global market turmoil. People close to the company said that by scrapping the debt financing that would have been required for the deal, Fosun’s leverage would be reduced, at a time when it is keen to improve its investment rating.