BEIJING (dpa-AFX) - The China stock market on Wednesday halted the two-day losing streak in which it had fallen more than 60 points or 1.8 percent. The Shanghai Composite Index now sits just beneath the 3,280-point plateau although it's expected to open firmly lower again on Thursday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is soft with technology stocks expected to continue their roller coaster ride, this time to the downside. A rising number of coronavirus cases adds to the negative sentiment. The European markets were up and the U.S. bourses were down and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.
The SCI finished slightly higher on Wednesday as gains from the broader market were offset by weakness from the financials, properties and oil and insurance companies.
For the day, the index gained 5.41 points or 0.17 percent to finish at 3,279.71 after trading between 3,264.89 and 3,289.76. The Shenzhen Composite Index advanced 18.03 points or 0.83 percent to end at 2,202.18.
Among the actives, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China eased 0.20 percent, while Bank of China collected 0.31 percent, China Construction Bank fell 0.32 percent, China Merchants Bank dropped 100 percent, China Life Insurance skidded 1.33 percent, Ping An Insurance was down 0.65 percent, PetroChina sank 0.72 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) slid 0.25 percent, China Shenhua Energy retreated 0.97 percent, Gemdale tanked 1.95 percent, Poly Developments shed 0.95 percent, China Vanke lost 0.90 percent and Bank of Communications was unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is broadly negative as stocks moved sharply lower on Wednesday, wiping out gains from the previous session as the markets fell to a one-month closing low.
The Dow tumbled 525.05 points or 1.92 percent to finish at 26,763.13, while the NASDAQ plummeted 330.65 points or 3.02 percent to end at 10,632.99 and the S&P 500 dropped 78.65 points or 2.37 percent to close at 3,236.92.
The sell-off on Wall Street came amid renewed weakness among technology stocks, as reflected by the particularly steep drop by the tech-heavy NASDAQ. Big-name tech companies like Netflix (NFLX), Apple (AAPL), Amazon (AMZN) and Alphabet (GOOGL) all showed significant moves to the downside.
Concerns about surging coronavirus cases in certain parts of the world may also have weighed on the markets even as President Donald Trump indicated the U.S. would not follow the U.K.'s lead and implement a second round of lockdowns.
Meanwhile, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, continuing to testify before Congress for the second day, said the U.S. Congress and the Federal Reserve both need to 'stay with it' in working to bolster the economic recovery.
Crude oil futures settled higher Wednesday after data showed a drop in U.S. crude inventories last week. But the upside was capped by worries about the energy demand outlook amid a continued surge in coronavirus cases. West Texas Intermediate Crude futures for November ended higher by $0.13 or 0.3 percent at $39.93 a barrel.
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