Chinese shares close 0.78 percent higher on bargain hunting

Chinese share prices shrugged off early weakness to close 0.78 percent higher Wednesday on bargain hunting, with oversold steel-makers and financial stocks attracting strong interest, dealers said.
They said there was no fresh news, with the gains coming simply in a modest technical rebound as the market continued to churn around current levels.
The Shanghai A-share Index added 8.91 points to 1,151.97 on turnover of 5.34 billion yuan (658 million dollars) while the Shenzhen A-share Index was up 2.05 points or 0.75 percent at 275.62 on turnover of 3.20 billion yuan. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, which covers both A- and B-shares, rose 8.38 points or 0.77 percent at 1,095.89 on turnover of 5.36 billion yuan.
The Chinese yuan closed at 8.0835 to the US dollar, up from its previous finish at 8.0845.
Baoshan Iron and Steel gained 0.12 yuan or 3.16 percent to 3.92 while Xining Special Steel jumped by its 10 percent daily limit to 2.83 yuan and Lingyuan Iron and Steel rose 0.35 or 8.68 percent to 4.38. In the financials, Shaanxi International Trust and Investment added 0.08 yuan or 2.02 percent to 4.05 and China Merchants Bank rose 0.09 or 1.50 percent to 6.09. CITIC Securities was up 0.06 yuan or 1.35 percent to 4.50 after it said it will acquire and restructure troubled Jintong Securities. Dongfang Electrical Machinery ended up 0.15 yuan or 1.38 percent at 11.04 after announcing a joint venture with a French company.
Sichuan Shuangma Cement rose its daily limit of 10 percent to 3.33 yuan after it confirmed France's Lafarge has agreed to acquire its parent, Shuangma Investment Group, for 305 million yuan. Agriculture stocks remained under pressure on bird flu fears after news of further outbreaks, bringing the total number over the past month to 11.
China Animal Husbandry Industry fell 0.11 yuan or 2.17 percent to 4.95, poultry firm Inner Mongolia Prairie XingFa was down 0.03 yuan or 1.0 percent to 2.97 and Henan Shuanghui Investment and Development lost 0.10 or 0.78 percent to 12.65.
The Shanghai B-share Index was flat at 60.67 points on turnover of 2.44 million US dollars while the Shenzhen B-share Index was up 0.83 points or 0.43 percent at 192.91 on turnover of 39.94 million Hong Kong dollars (5.13 million US dollars).