INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
SHANGHAI: China stocks edged up on Friday to post their best week in a month, aided by strong gains in shares of technology companies.
The
blue-chip CSI300 index ended 0.2 per cent higher at 3,405.02 points while the Shanghai Composite Index closed flat at 2,795.31 points
For the week, CSI300 is up 2.7 per cent while the SSEC gained 2 per cent, both posting their best week since mid-July
However, both the SSEC and CSI300 are down more than 10 pct since late May
Technology shares have rallied after China said it has revamped
a national leadership group charged with planning and studying its key technological development strategies, signalling a potential policy
boost for home-grown tech firms
The tech-heavy start-up board ChiNextP rallied 2 per cent this week, snapping a three-week losing streak
But gains in the market were capped as worries lingered over the trade frictions with the United States
China's top newspaper rebutted growing criticism in government circles that Beijing should have taken a lower profile to head off its
trade war with the United States, saying on Friday that, like an elephant, China cannot hide its size and strength
A growing trade war with the United States is causing rifts within China's Communist Party, with some critics saying that an overly
nationalistic Chinese stance may have hardened the United States position, according to four sources close to the government
Around the region, MSCI's Asia ex-Japan stock index was weaker by 1.02 per cent while Japan's Nikkei index closed down 1.33 per cent
At 07:00 GMT, the yuan was quoted at 6.8525 per United States dollar, 0.51 per cent weaker than the previous close of 6.818
The largest per centage gainers in the main Shanghai Composite index were Keda Group Co Ltd up 10.07 per cent, followed by Nacity Property
Service Co Ltd, up 10.02 per cent, and Zhejiang Xinneng Photovoltaic Technology Co Ltd , up 10.01 per cent
The largest per centage losers in the Shanghai index were Anhui Liuguo Chemical Co Ltd, down 8.38 per cent, followed by Hebei Jinniu
Chemical Industry Co Ltd, down 8.22 per cent, and Angel Yeast Co Ltd, down 7.37 per cent
So far this year, the Shanghai stock index is down 15.5 per cent, the CSI300 has fallen 15.5 per cent while China's H-share index listed
in Hong Kong is down 6.6 per cent
Shanghai stocks have declined 2.81 per cent this month
About 12.15 billion shares were traded on the Shanghai exchange, roughly 86.7 per cent of the market's 30-day moving average of 14.01
The volume in the previous trading session was 15.17 billion
As of 07:01 GMT, China's A-shares were trading at a premium of 16.70 per cent over the Hong Kong-listed H-shares.
