BEIJING (dpa-AFX) - The China stock market on Thursday ended the two-day winning streak in which it advanced more than 85 points or 2.1 percent. The Shanghai Composite Index now sits just above the 4,075-point plateau and it's expected to open to the downside again on Friday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is negative on disappointing data and continued weakness from technology stocks. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses are expected to follow that lead.
The SCI finished modestly lower on Thursday following losses from the oil, resource and insurance companies, while the financials offered support and the properties were mixed.
For the day, the index slumped 26.29 points or 0.64 percent to finish at 4,075.92 after trading between 4,048.94 and 4,088.90. The Shenzhen Composite Index tumbled 34.81 points or 1.30 percent to end at 2,650.65.
Among the actives, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China gained 0.83 percent, while Bank of China advanced 0.93 percent, Agricultural Bank of China added 0.45 percent, China Merchants Bank rallied 1.79 percent, Bank of Communications collected 1.35 percent, China Life Insurance tumbled 1.79 percent, Jiangxi Copper cratered 5.10 percent, Aluminum Corp of China (Chalco) plunged 5.95 percent, Yankuang Energy climbed 1.11 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) declined 1.54 percent, Huaneng Power shed 0.43 percent, China Shenhua Energy retreated 1.32 percent, Gemdale vaulted 1.50 percent, Poly Developments and PetroChina both slipped 0.28 percent and China Vanke fell 0.41 percent.
The lead from Wall Street is weak as the major averages opened lower on Thursday and spent the entire session in the red, ending near daily lows.
The Dow tumbled 592.58 points or 1.20 percent to finish at 48,908.72, while the NASDAQ sank 363.99 points or 1.59 percent to end at 22,540.59 and the S&P 500 shed 84.32 points or 1.23 percent to close at 6,798.40.
Weakness among tech stocks continued to weigh on Wall Street amid losses from Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL) and Qualcomm (QCOM), which provided disappointing guidance.
Tech stocks have moved sharply lower over the past few sessions amid concerns about valuations and the impact of artificial intelligence.
In U.S. economic news, the Labor Department said first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits rose much more than expected last week. The Labor Department also said job openings in the U.S. unexpectedly fell to their lowest level in over five years in December.
Crude oil prices plunged on Thursday after weak U.S. jobs data increased demand concerns. West Texas Intermediate crude for March delivery was down $1.87 or 2.87 percent at $63.27 per barrel.
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