BEIJING (dpa-AFX) - The China stock market has moved to the upside in consecutive trading days, collecting almost 25 points or 1.2 percent along the way. The Shanghai Composite Index finished just below the 2,080-point plateau, and the market is poised to see additional support on Thursday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets suggests mild upside, with fairly good earnings news capped by ongoing geopolitical concerns in Gaza and Ukraine. The European markets were slightly higher and the U.S. bourses were mixed but little changed - and the Asian markets figure to split the difference at the open.
The SCI finished slightly higher on Wednesday, bumped into the green by support from the financial stocks and the coal miners.
For the day, the index added 3.01 points or 0.14 percent to finish at 2,078.49 after trading between 2,072.23 and 2,088.19 on turnover of 106.7 billion yuan. The Shenzhen Component Index gained 2.65 points or 0.04 percent to end at 7,375.31 on turnover of 122.0 billion yuan.
Among the actives, SDIC Xinji Energy surged 8.11 percent, while Jiangxi Copper climbed 3.81 percent, Ping An Insurance advanced 2.14 percent and China Construction Bank collected 0.77 percent.
The lead from Wall Street is cautiously optimistic as stocks fluctuated on Wednesday before eventually ending the session mixed.
The Dow edged down 26.91 points or 0.2 percent to 17,086.63, while the NASDAQ rose 17.68 points or 0.4 percent to 4,473.70 and the S&P 500 crept up 3.48 points or 0.2 percent to 1,987.01. The modest gain on the day lifted the S&P 500 to a new record closing high.
The loss on the Dow was partly due to a steep drop by shares of Boeing (BA), which came under pressure even though the aerospace giant reported better than expected second quarter earnings and raised its full-year guidance.
On the other hand, beverage and snack giant PepsiCo (PEP) moved higher after reporting better than expected second quarter results despite a drop in North American carbonated drink sales.
The mixed performance also came amid lingering concerns about the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza. Ukraine's Defense Ministry has claimed pro-Russian separatists shot down two Ukrainian fighter jets - while traders also kept an eye on Israel's ongoing offensive in Gaza, where the Palestinian death toll has reached 650.
Later today, China will release preliminary July results for the manufacturing PMI from Markit Economics, with forecasts suggesting a score of 51.0 - up from 50.7 in June.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX