Ahead of the long weekend for the Dragon Boat Festival, the China stock market has finished higher in three straight sessions, collecting almost 50 points or 1.6 percent along the way. The Shanghai Composite Index now rests just above the 3,110-point plateau although investors figure to cash in on Wednesday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets predicts mild consolidation thanks to soft economic data and a decline in oil prices. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian markets are expected to open in similar fashion.
The SCI finished barely higher on Friday following gains from the financial shares and the resource stocks.
For the day, the index added 2.23 points or 0.07 percent to finish at 3,110.06 after trading between 3,100.39 and 3,120.66. The Shenzhen Composite Index dipped 1.79 points or 0.10 percent to end at 1,810.11.
Among the actives, Agricultural Bank of China advanced 0.86 percent, while Industrial and Commercial Bank of China jumped 1.36 percent, Vanke added 0.24 percent, PetroChina shed 0.89 percent, China Shenhua gained 0.51 percent, Zijin Mining collected 0.31 percent and Gemdale and Bank of China were unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is negative as stocks moved lower on Tuesday, snapping a long win streak as weakness emerged in the energy and banking sectors.
The Dow shed 50.81 points or 0.24 percent to 21,029.41, while the NASDAQ fell 7.00 points or 0.11 percent to 6,203.19 and the S&P lost 2.91 points or 0.12 percent to 2,412.91.
In economic news, the Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index slipped to 117.9 in May, down from 119.4 in April. Also, the Commerce Department said personal income and spending both increased as expected in April.
Crude oil futures were little changed Tuesday, bouncing back from early losses to remain in a tight range near $50 a barrel. July WTI oil was down 14 cents or 0.3 percent to $49.66/bbl.
Closer to home, China will see May results for the official manufacturing and non-manufacturing PMIs.
The manufacturing PMI is expected to show a score of 51.0, down from 51.2 in April, while the non-manufacturing PMI is called at 53.6 – down from 54.0 in the previous month.
by RTT Staff Writer
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