SHANGHAI: Chinese shares closed higher on Wednesday, with high-tech stocks and new energy companies leading gains, as capital inflows recovered after a selloff driven by tensions between Russia and Ukraine.

The blue-chip CSI300 index rose 1.1% to 4,623.05, while the Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.9% to 3,489.15 points.

The CSI All Share Semiconductor subindex jumped 6%, Shanghai’s tech-focused STAR50 index advanced 4% and the CSI info tech subindex climbed 3.5%.

The New Energy subindex added 3.5%, with Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL) up 3%.

Gains in tech and new energy shares were fuelled by net purchases from overseas investors.

Northbound inflows through the Stock Connect totalled 5.4 billion yuan on Wednesday, according to Refinitiv data. Net outflows totalled 3.61 billion yuan on Tuesday.

Western nations and Japan on Tuesday punished Russia with new sanctions for ordering troops into separatist regions of eastern Ukraine and threatened to go further if Moscow launched an all-out invasion of its neighbour.

China has never thought sanctions are the best way to solve problems, its foreign ministry said, when asked if the Asian nation would join Western countries in sanctioning Russia over Ukraine.

The CSI China Aviation Industry Aerospace Defence Index surged 4.6%.

In contrast, the banks index slipped 0.9% and the real estate index slumped 2.4%, after a commentary in a state-backed paper said China must guard against excessive policy easing in the property sector pushing up the market too fast. The smaller Shenzhen index was up 1.75% and the start-up board ChiNext Composite index was 2.8% higher.

The Hang Seng index rose 0.6% to 23,660.28, while the China Enterprises Index gained 0.6% to 8,317.22 points.

Food delivery giant Meituan rose 3.1%, after a state media commentary said the market had overreacted to government guidance on lowering fees. HSBC Holdings, up 2.9%, and Meituan and were the two biggest point contributors to the Hang Seng Index. The healthcare subindex closed 3.1% higher.