SHANGHAI: China stocks ended higher on Tuesday, as upbeat Chinese economic data and coronavirus vaccine hopes lifted risk appetite. The blue-chip CSI300 index rose 0.8% to 4,688.48, while the Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.5% to 3,295.68. China's industrial output accelerated the most in eight months in August, while retail sales grew for the first time this year, suggesting the economic recovery is gathering pace as demand starts to improve more broadly from the coronavirus crisis.

Meanwhile, China's central bank injected 600 billion yuan ($88.13 billion) worth of medium-term loans into the banking system to supplement liquidity. "Today's activity data and the MLF injection lend support to our view that Beijing will neither add more easing measures nor start tightening in the near term," wrote Ting Lu, chief China economist at Nomura.

Sentiment is also aided by news that coronavirus vaccines being developed in China may be ready for use by the general public as early as November. China's Nasdaq-style STAR Market is up over 1%, as the first batch of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) tracking the STAR 50 Index will be launched next Tuesday, potentially channelling more money into the market. Consumer discretionary shares and healthcare stocks were among the best performers, rising 1.6% and 1.5%, respectively.