BEIJING (dpa-AFX) - The China stock market has moved higher in back-to-back sessions, collecting more than 35 points or 0.8 percent along the way. The Shanghai Composite Index now sits just above the 4,130-point plateau although it's looking at a soft start on Thursday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is soft on continuing concerns over the war in the Middle East and surging oil prices. The European markets were down and the U.S. bourses were mixed and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.
The SCI finished modestly higher on Wednesday following gains from the financial shares, property stocks and energy companies.
For the day, the index added 10.29 points or 0.25 percent to finish at 4,133.43 after trading between 4,112.80 and 4,135.84. The Shenzhen Composite Index gained 14.20 points or 0.52 percent to end at 2,744.02.
Among the actives, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China climbed 1.14 percent, while Bank of China added 0.56 percent, Agricultural Bank of China improved 0.76 percent, China Merchants Bank collected 0.71 percent, Bank of Communications advanced 0.89 percent, China Life Insurance dipped 0.16 percent, Jiangxi Copper shed 0.69 percent, Aluminum Corp of China (Chalco) jumped 1.90 percent, Yankuang Energy soared 3.44 percent, PetroChina vaulted 1.17 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) sank 0.76 percent, Huaneng Power rallied 2.53 percent, China Shenhua Energy surged 3.57 percent, Gemdale rose 0.32 percent, Poly Developments gained 0.63 percent and China Vanke was unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street offers little clarity as the major averages spent much of Wednesday's trade bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line before ending mixed.
The Dow dropped 289.24 points or 0.61 percent to finish at 47,417.27, while the NASDAQ rose 19.03 points or 0.08 percent to end at 22,716.13 and the S&P 500 dipped 5.68 points or 0.08 percent to close at 6,775.80.
The recent volatility has largely been driven by big swings by the price of crude oil, which rebounded on Wednesday.
Crude oil is regained ground after the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said it has received reports of three vessels being struck by projectiles off Iran's coast, adding to worries about transit through the Strait of Hormuz.
Crude oil prices skyrocketed on Wednesday as the Middle East conflict fails to show any indication of calming down soon. West Texas Intermediate crude for April delivery was up $4.21 or 5.04 percent at $87.66 per barrel.
Meanwhile, traders largely shrugged off a report from the Labor Department showing consumer prices in the U.S. increased in line with estimates in February.
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