BEIJING (dpa-AFX) - The China stock market has moved higher in back-to-back sessions, advancing almost 120 points or 3 percent in that span. The Shanghai Composite Index now sits just above the 3,930-point plateau and it's got a positive lead again for Thursday's trade.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is positive on easing oil prices and some optimism for a ceasefire in the Middle East. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses are expected to open in similar fashion.
The SCI finished sharply higher on Wednesday following gains from the financial shares, resource stocks and properties, although the energy producers were soft.
For the day, the index rallied 50.56 points or 1.30 percent to finish at 3,931.84 after trading between 3,891.82 and 3,933.06. The Shenzhen Composite Index jumped 49.62 points or 1.96 percent to end at 2,584.26.
Among the actives, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China rose 0.27 percent, while Bank of China strengthened 1.46 percent, Agricultural Bank of China improved 0.77 percent, China Merchants Bank perked 0.03 percent, Bank of Communications collected 0.15 percent, China Life Insurance added 0.51 percent, Jiangxi Copper rallied 2.31 percent, Aluminum Corp of China (Chalco) jumped 1.86 percent, Yankuang Energy plunged 4.09 percent, PetroChina tumbled 2.42 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) lost 0.34 percent, Huaneng Power spiked 2.13 percent, China Shenhua Energy tanked 2.54 percent, Gemdale advanced 0.71 percent, Poly Developments gained 0.67 percent and China Vanke increased 0.73 percent.
The lead from Wall Street is upbeat as the major averages opened higher on Wednesday and spent the whole day in the green.
The Dow jumped 305.43 points or 0.66 percent to finish at 46,429.49, while the NASDAQ climbed 167.93 points or 0.77 percent to end at 21.929.83 and the S&P 500 gained 35.53 points or 0.54 percent to close at 6,591.90.
The early strength on Wall Street came amid a sharp pullback by the price of crude oil, with international benchmark Brent crude futures slumping by 1.7 percent after surging in the previous session.
Crude oil prices slumped Wednesday on reports of negotiations to end the war between the U.S. and Iran, easing transport concerns via the Strait of Hormuz. West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery was down $2.22 or 2.40 percent at $90.13 per barrel.
However, buying interest was partly offset by a report from Iran's state-linked media Fars News Agency claiming Iran will not accept the ceasefire offer from the U.S.
In U.S. economic news, the Labor Department said U.S. import and export prices increased by much more than expected in February.
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