BEIJING/SHANGHAI: China stocks closed lower on Wednesday, dragged down by losses in electric vehicle and healthcare shares on profit-taking, while concerns about tighter regulation over big tech companies also weighed on sentiment.

At the close, the Shanghai Composite index was down 0.53% at 3,342.20.

The blue-chip CSI300 index was down 0.99%, with its new energy vehicle sector sub-index down 3.56%, tech sub-index lower by 3.1% and the healthcare sub-index down 2.45%.

The real estate index was up 1.38% and the bank sector sub-index added 0.7%.

The smaller Shenzhen index ended down 1.93% and the start-up board ChiNext Composite index was weaker by 3.306%.

While regulatory concerns could be the biggest risk factor going into 2021 for internet companies, the Chinese government is not aiming to curb the development of internet companies as the platform economy brings innovation and digitalisation to the overall economy, Daiwa analysts wrote in a report. Vehicle sales in China rose 12.5% in October from the same month a year earlier, the seventh straight monthly rise as the world’s biggest vehicle market leads the global industry in recovering from lows hit during the Covid-19 pandemic.—Reuters