BEIJING/SHANGHAI: China shares ended higher on Wednesday with healthcare and banking stocks leading the gains, following upbeat quarterly earnings reports.

The Shanghai Composite index closed flat at 3,472.93, while the blue-chip CSI300 index was up 0.3%.

The blue-chip’s banking sector sub-index was higher by 1.79%, and the healthcare sub-index up 2.19%.

Lenders gained after some banks posted upbeat quarterly results. Shenzhen shares in Ping An Bank Co Ltd rose by 6.09% to 23.01 yuan, posting its best daily performance since March 3.

The bank posted a 18.5% jump in net profit in the January-March quarter.

The smaller Shenzhen index ended up 0.22% and the start-up board ChiNext Composite index was higher by 0.721%.