China Shares May Bounce Higher Again On Thursday

The China stock market headed south again on Wednesday, one day after ending the two-day slide in which it had slumped more than 70 points or 2.3 percent. The Shanghai Composite Index now sits just beneath the 3,080-point plateau although it’s expected to see renewed support on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat, with technology stocks expected to fuel the rally. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian markets are expected to open in similar fashion.

The SCI finished sharply lower on Wednesday following losses from the resource stocks and properties, while the financials came in mixed.

For the day, the index tumbled 41.93 points or 1.34 percent to finish at 3,078.40 after trading between 3,077.61 and 3,116.38. The Shenzhen Composite Index slumped 38.03 points or 1.96 percent to finish at 1,901.85.

Among the actives, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China collected 0.43 percent, while Bank of China climbed 1.06 percent, China Construction Bank advanced 0.83 percent, China Merchants Bank retreated 1.50 percent, Bank of Communications perked 0.18 percent, China Life Insurance declined 1.27 percent, Jiangxi Copper shed 0.69 percent, Aluminum Corp of China (Chalco) plunged 2.51 percent, Yankuang Energy rallied 1.30 percent, PetroChina rose 0.26 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) eased 0.16 percent, Huaneng Power plummeted 3.27 percent, China Shenhua Energy jumped 1.89 percent, Gemdale tanked 4.69 percent, Poly Developments slumped 1.37 percent and China Vanke stumbled 1.43 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is positive as the major averages opened higher and accelerated as the day progressed, ending near session highs.

The Dow gained 184.15 points or 0.54 percent to finish at 34,472.98, while the NASDAQ spiked 215.16 points or 1.59 percent to end at 13,721.03 and the S&P 500 added 48.46 points or 1.10 percent to close at 4,436.01.

The spike by the Nasdaq came as tech stocks rallied ahead of earnings news from Nvidia (NVDA), and the chipmaker released strong fiscal second quarter results after the close of trading.

A steep drop by bond yields also generated some buying interest, as the 10-year yield pulled back further off highest levels in well over 15 years.

In economic news, S&P noted a slowdown in the pace service sector activity and a contraction in manufacturing activity in August. Also, the Commerce Department said new home sales rebounded much more than expected in July.

Crude oil futures settled lower Wednesday amid concerns about the outlook for oil demand after data showed a decline in global manufacturing activity. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for October ended lower by $0.75 or 0.9 percent at $78.89 a barrel.

Market Analysis