The China stock market bounced higher again on Thursday, one session after ending the two-day winning streak in which it had gathered more than 40 points or 1.2 percent. The Shanghai Composite Index now rests just beneath the 3,565-point plateau although it’s likely to open under pressure again on Friday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is soft on sinking crude oil prices and renewed Covid-19 concerns. The European markets were down and the U.S. bourses were mixed and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.
The SCI finished sharply higher on Thursday following gains from the financial shares and resource stocks, while the oil companies were soft and the properties were mixed.
For the day, the index climbed 36.09 points or 1.02 percent to finish at 3,564.59 after trading between 3,514.26 and 3,565.93. The Shenzhen Composite Index added 8.65 points or 0.35 percent to end at 2,478.72.
Among the actives, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China advanced 0.85 percent, while Bank of China collected 0.33 percent, China Construction Bank jumped 1.51 percent, China Merchants Bank soared 4.29 percent, Bank of Communications climbed 1.13 percent, China Minsheng Bank rose 0.47 percent, China Life Insurance rallied 2.09 percent, Jiangxi Copper surged 5.01 percent, Aluminum Corp of China (Chalco) accelerated 1.82 percent, Yanzhou Coal gathered 1.24 percent, PetroChina shed 0.41 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) fell 0.24 percent, Gemdale added 0.51 percent, Poly Developments was up 0.08 percent, China Vanke perked 1.34 percent, China Fortune Land retreated 1.14 percent, Beijing Capital Development declined 0.96 percent and China Shenhua Energy was unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is something of a dichotomy as stocks opened lower on Thursday. The NASDAQ and S&P stayed in the red all day, but the Dow bounced back and forth across the unchanged line and managed a slightly higher finish.
The Dow added 53.79 points or 0.15 percent to finish at 34,987.02, while the NASDAQ sank 101.82 points or 0.70 percent to end at 14,543.13 and the S&P 500 fell 14.27 points or 0.33 percent to close at 4,360.03.
The weakness in the broader markets partly reflected concerns that some central banks around the world are considering tightening monetary policy much sooner than the Federal Reserve.
In economic news, the Federal Reserve said industrial production increased less than expected in June. Also, the Labor Department said first-time claims for unemployment benefits decreased in line with estimates last week.
Also, the Labor Department said U.S. import prices increased as expected last month, while separate reports from the New York Federal Reserve and the Philadelphia Federal Reserve showed mixed readings on the pace of growth in manufacturing activity in the two regions.
Crude oil prices declined sharply Thursday, sending the most active crude futures contracts to their lowest close in nearly a month amid rising concerns about outlook for energy demand. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for August ended down by $1.48 or 2 percent at $71.65 a barrel, the lowest settlement since June 18.
Market Analysis
Lower Open Predicted For China Stock Market
2021-07-16 01:03:59
