BEIJING (dpa-AFX) - The China stock market has climbed higher in six straight sessions, accelerating more than 280 points or 9 percent along the way. The Shanghai Composite Index now sits just above the 3,345-point plateau although investors figure to cash in hard on Wednesday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is negative on concerns over the rebounding number of coronavirus cases. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses figure to open in similar fashion.
The SCI finished modestly higher on Tuesday following mixed performances from the financial shares and insurance companies, although the property sector was soft.
For the day, the index gained 12.46 points or 0.37 percent to finish at 3,345.34 after trading between 3,336.24 and 3,407.08. The Shenzhen Composite Index jumped 36.35 points or 1.71 percent to end at 2,157.94.
Among the actives, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China shed 0.71 percent, while Bank of China skidded 1.29 percent, China Merchants Bank collected 1.61 percent, China Minsheng Bank climbed 1.24 percent, China Life Insurance rallied 2.61 percent, Ping An Insurance dropped 1.07 percent, PetroChina lost 0.42 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) sank 0.94 percent, China Shenhua Energy added 0.24 percent, Gemdale tumbled 2.98 percent, Poly Developments retreated 1.83 percent, China Vanke plunged 2.32 percent and China Construction Bank was unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is soft as stocks moved significantly lower on Tuesday, giving ground following the strong upward move seen in recent sessions.
The Dow tumbled 396.85 points or 1.51 percent, while the NASDAQ lost 89.76 points or 0.86 percent to end at 10,343.89 and the S&P 500 dropped 34.40 points or 1.08 percent to close at 3,145.32.
The weakness that emerged on Wall Street came as a lack of major U.S. economic data allowed concerns about the coronavirus pandemic to resurface. The concerns came as World Health Organization officials warned that the death toll from the pandemic may start to climb again.
Atlanta Federal Reserve President Raphael Bostic also warned that the spike in coronavirus cases in southern and western states could slow the U.S. economic recovery.
Crude oil futures settled nearly flat on Tuesday as traders weighed the prospects for energy demand amid reports showing a surge in coronavirus infections. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for August settled at $40.62 a barrel, down just a penny from the previous close.
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