Chinese shares ended higher for the fourth straight day on Thursday, as top Asia oil refiner Sinopec Corp rose on renewed privatisation talk and speculation that China could reform its refined oil product price regime.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.44 percent to end at 1,302.457, extending a 0.5 percent gain on Wednesday.
"The market is also rife with rumours that Sinopec is to take private its listed units. It's a matter of timing," said a fund manager at an European bank.
There is also talk that Beijing will allow a substantial price increase in refined oil products, including gasoline, even though a Sinopec official said such move was up to Beijing.
That helped send Sinopec up 1.34 percent to close at 5.31 yuan. Bucking the trend, top Shanghai-listed lender China Merchants Bank, one of the most actively traded stocks of the day, fell 1.09 percent to 6.37 yuan, after a 0.78 percent rise the previous day.
China's major index has been Asia's worst performer over the past two years but began to rebound late last year in a strong technical rally. It is up around 12 percent this year, boosted by Beijing's repeated pledges to boost the markets.
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