Most China stocks up

28 May, 2008

Most Chinese stocks closed higher on Tuesday as financials rebounded moderately, but turnover was tiny and the main index was dampened by Sinopec, which continued sliding on concern about high global oil prices. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, which slid 3.13 percent on Monday, ended Tuesday up 0.32 percent at 3,375.407 points, off a low of 3,333.951.
Rising Shanghai stocks outnumbered losers by 570 to 324, but turnover in Shanghai A shares shrank to a one-month low of 55.0 billion yuan ($7.9 billion) from Monday's 66.9 billion yuan.
Banks were firm and brokerages surged on hopes that regulators would take new steps to support share prices and ensure market stability before the Beijing Olympics in August. Such steps could include the long-delayed introduction of margin financing, which might boost brokerage revenues.
"If there are any market-support measures, brokerages would be the biggest beneficiaries." CITIC Securities the biggest listed brokerage, rose 2.44 percent to 32.34 yuan. Haitong Securities surged 9.61 percent to 23.04 yuan, after tumbling 19 percent over the previous two days on news that Minsheng Bank was attracting little interest in its planned sale of a small stake in the brokerage.

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