China's key stock index slipped 0.36 percent on Friday in light trade, weighed down by Bank of Communications as 13.2 billion of its A shares emerged from a lock-up period while shares of firms in earthquake-hit Sichuan Province were mixed.
The index has mostly held firm following Monday's devastating quake in south-west China, losing a marginal 0.3 percent for the week. Analysts and local media reported talk earlier in the week that the government was encouraging market participants to help preserve stability in the market in the aftermath of the disaster, which is expected to have killed more than 50,000.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index ended at 3,624.233 points on Friday, after dipping as low as 3,582.500. Losing stocks in Shanghai outnumbered gainers by 641 to 212, although blue chips were mostly firmer. Turnover in Shanghai A shares shrank to 89.3 billion yuan ($12.8 billion), down from Thursday's 112.2 billion yuan and the lowest daily volume in more than three weeks.
Financial shares were mixed, with Bank of Communications dropping 3.07 percent to 9.46 yuan while Haitong Securities raced up its 10 percent daily limit to 56.39 yuan after announcing a generous bonus share plan. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the country's largest lender, ended unchanged at 6.21 yuan. Three new shares made a strong debut on the Shenzhen bourse, with Guangdong Tapai rising 63 percent from its IPO price to 16.33 yuan, while Shandong Minhe Animal Husbandry soared 212 percent to 33.10 yuan and Xiamen Anne shot up 65 percent to 18.00 yuan.