SHANGHAI: China stocks closed up on Thursday after solid April trade data added to signs of a pick-up in demand, while the latest property policy in a megacity also improved sentiment.

China’s exports and imports returned to growth in April after contracting in the previous month, signalling an encouraging improvement in demand at home and overseas. Also, China’s eastern metropolis of Hangzhou said on Thursday it will lift all home purchase restrictions to shore up its real estate market, raising the prospect of other cities following suit.

“The policies in the property sector are changing in a meaningful way recently,” said Zhiwei Zhang, chief economist at Pinpoint Asset Management.

“A stabilization of the property sector would help to boost domestic demand and mitigate the deflationary pressure.” ** At the close, the Shanghai Composite index was up 0.83% at 3,154.32.

The blue-chip CSI300 index was up 0.95%, with its financial sector sub-index higher by 0.48%, the consumer staples sector down 0.05%, the real estate index up 2.04% and the healthcare sub-index up 0.56%.

The Hang Seng index was up 223.95 points or 1.22% at 18,537.81. The Hang Seng China Enterprises index rose 1.61% to 6,560.67.

In China, the smaller Shenzhen index ended up 1.34% and the start-up board ChiNext Composite index was higher by 1.871%.

Around the region, MSCI’s Asia ex-Japan stock index was weaker by 0.27%, while Japan’s Nikkei index closed down 0.34%.

The sub-index of the Hang Seng tracking energy shares rose 0.4%, while the IT sector rose 2.16%, the financial sector ended 0.38% higher and the property sector rose 1.39%. The top gainer on the Hang Seng was Lenovo Group Ltd , which gained 8.72%, while the biggest loser was Li Auto Inc, which fell 2.01%.