BEIJING (dpa-AFX) - The China stock market has finished higher in six straight sessions, gathering more than 125 points or 4.3 percent along the way. The Shanghai Composite Index now rests just beneath the 3,010-point plateau although it's overdue for consolidation on Tuesday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is murky, with trade and geopolitical concerns in focus. The European and U.S. markets were mixed but little changed and the Asian bourses are predicted to follow that lead.
The SCI finished modestly higher on Monday as gains from the financial and insurance shares were capped by weakness from the oil companies and a mixed picture from the property sector.
For the day, the index added 6.17 points or 0.21 percent to finish at 3,008.15 after trading between 2,994.42 and 3,012.83. The Shenzhen Composite Index eased 1.35 points or 0.09 percent to end at 1,576.09.
Among the actives, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China collected 0.51 percent, while China Merchants Bank gained 0.72 percent, China Construction Bank gained 0.40 percent, Bank of China and Ping An Insurance both added 0.27 percent, China Life Insurance advanced 0.78 percent, PetroChina shed 0.28 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) dipped 0.18 percent, China Shenhua Energy jumped 1.60 percent, Gemdale fell 0.41 percent, Poly Developments rose 0.38 percent, China Vanke lost 0.64 percent and CITIC Securities dipped 0.30 percent.
The lead from Wall Street provides little clarity as stocks continued to see choppy trading Monday, showing a lack of direction before closing mixed.
The Dow added 8.41 points or 0.03 percent to end at 26,727.54, while the NASDAQ lost 26.01 points or 0.32 percent to 8,005.70 and the S&P 500 fell 5.11 points or 0.17 percent to 2,945.35.
Traders seemed reluctant to make big moves ahead of the highly anticipated G20 summit in Osaka, Japan, later this week. U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are scheduled to meet during the summit in an effort to kick start stalled trade negotiations.
Rising tensions between the U.S. and Iran also kept traders on the sidelines, with Trump announcing new sanctions on Iran after an unmanned U.S. surveillance drone was recently shot down by Iranian forces.
Crude oil futures ended higher Monday, extending gains to a third straight session amid rising tensions between the U.S. and Iran. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for August ended up $0.47 or 0.8 percent at $57.90 a barrel, the highest settlement since May 29.
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