BEIJING (dpa-AFX) - The China stock market moved higher in two straight sessions, gathering almost 35 points or 1.4 percent along the way. The Shanghai Composite Index remains just above the 2,570-point plateau and it has another green light for Thursday's trade.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is positive thanks to solid earnings news and a bump in crude oil prices. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses are tipped to open in similar fashion.
The SCI finished barely higher on Wednesday following gains from the financial shares and insurance companies, while the properties were mixed.
For the day, the index added 0.08 points or 0.01 percent to finish at 2,570.42 after trading between 2,563.01 and 2,574.24. The Shenzhen Composite Index eased 1.64 points or 0.12 percent to end at 1,321.52.
Among the actives, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China added 0.19 percent, while China Construction Bank collected 0.47 percent, China Merchants Bank rose 0.19 percent, China Life Insurance jumped 1.76 percent, Ping An Insurance gained 0.26 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) climbed 1.13 percent, China Shenhua Energy shed 0.37 percent, Gemdale lost 0.69 percent, Poly Developments perked 1.54 percent, China Vanke advanced 1.03 percent, CITIC Securities gathered 0.23 percent and China Minsheng Bank, Bank of China and PetroChina were unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is upbeat as stocks moved mostly higher on Wednesday, pushing the major averages to their best closing levels in a month.
The Dow added 141.57 points or 0.59 percent to 24,207.16, while the NASDAQ gained 10.86 points or 0.15 percent to 7,034.69 and the S&P 500 rose 5.80 points or 0.22 percent to 2,616.10.
The continued strength on Wall Street reflected a positive reaction to upbeat earnings news from financial giants Bank of America (BAC) and Goldman Sachs (GS).
Stocks remained mostly positive after British Prime Minister Theresa May's government survived a vote of no confidence in parliament.
The Federal Reserve released its Beige Book Wednesday afternoon, with the report saying economic activity has continued to increase in most of the U.S. but also hinting at a deterioration in optimism.
In economic news, the Labor Department noted a drop in import prices in December, reflecting a continued nosedive in fuel prices. A separate report from the National Association of Home Builders showed an unexpected improvement in homebuilder confidence in January.
Crude oil futures settled higher on Wednesday, after data showed a bigger than expected drop in U.S. crude inventories last week. Crude oil futures for February ended up $0.20 or 0.4 percent at $52.31 a barrel.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX