BEIJING (dpa-AFX) - The China stock market has finished lower in four straight sessions, retreating more than 60 points or 2.1 percent along the way. The Shanghai Composite Index now rests just above the 2,960-point plateau although it may stop the bleeding on Tuesday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets suggests mild upside on growing optimism for improved trade. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were modestly higher and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.
The SCI finished sharply lower on Monday following losses from the financial shares, property stocks and oil and insurance companies.
For the day, the index tumbled 42.19 points or 1.40 percent to finish at 2,962.75 after trading between 2,960.44 and 3,009.34. The Shenzhen Composite Index plunged 32.58 points or 1.92 percent to end at 1,667.71.
Among the actives, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China dropped 1.01 percent, while Bank of China shed 0.81 percent, China Construction Bank sank 0.83 percent, China Merchants Bank fell 0.37 percent, China Life Insurance skidded 1.38 percent, Ping An Insurance tumbled 1.45 percent, PetroChina retreated 1.55 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) lost 1.19 percent, Baoshan Iron declined 0.71 percent, Gemdale plunged 3.13 percent, Poly Developments plummeted 2.25 percent and China Vanke was down 2.11 percent.
The lead from Wall Street is upbeat as stocks moved modestly higher on Monday, extending recent gains and sending the major averages to fresh record closing highs.
The Dow added 96.44 points or 0.34 percent to finish at 28,551.53, while the NASDAQ rose 20.69 points or 0.23 percent to 8,945.65 and the S&P 500 gained 2.79 points or 0.09 percent to 3,224.01.
The continued strength on Wall Street came on the heels of news that China's Finance Ministry has announced plans to lower tariffs on a range of products, including frozen pork, pharmaceuticals and some high-tech components.
Trading activity remained relatively subdued, however, with some traders looking to get a head start on the Christmas holiday.
In economic news, the Commerce Department saw an unexpected slump in durable goods orders, and it also noted a significant increase in U.S. new home sales in November.
Crude oil futures ended higher on Monday, although gains were marginal as traders refrained from big moves ahead of upcoming Christmas and New Year holidays. West Texas Intermediate Crude Oil futures for February ended up $0.08 at $60.52 a barrel.
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