Over the past three sessions, China's stock market has experienced an upward trend, gaining over 50 points or 1.8%. As a result, the Shanghai Composite Index (SCI) is now positioned above the 3,170-point mark and is expected to open positively on Tuesday. This optimistic outlook for Asian markets is bolstered by strength in technology shares, with European markets showing gains and U.S. markets exhibiting mixed results. On Monday, the SCI saw another modest increase, driven by resource and energy companies, although financial stocks lagged and property stocks showed mixed results. Specifically, the index climbed 17.12 points or 0.54% to close at 3,171.15, after trading between 3,155.99 and 3,174.27. Meanwhile, the Shenzhen Composite Index added 8.39 points or 0.47%, ending at 1,793.98.
In terms of individual stock performance, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China fell by 0.18%, Bank of China decreased by 0.45%, and China Construction Bank dipped by 0.42%. China Merchants Bank was down 1.28%, and Bank of Communications dropped 0.57%. Conversely, China Life Insurance rose by 1.00%, Jiangxi Copper soared by 5.87%, and Aluminum Corp of China (Chalco) surged by 4.76%. Additionally, Yankuang Energy and PetroChina gained 3.54% and 2.92%, respectively. China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) climbed by 1.10%, Huaneng Power increased by 1.70%, China Shenhua Energy advanced by 2.61%, Gemdale spiked by 5.25%, and China Vanke rose by 2.00%, while Poly Developments fell by 1.07%.
The lead from Wall Street was mixed, with major indices demonstrating varied performances throughout Monday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped by 196.82 points or 0.49%, landing at 39,806.77. In contrast, the NASDAQ Composite surged by 108.91 points or 0.65%, reaching a record high of 16,794.88, while the S&P 500 edged up by 4.86 points or 0.09%, closing at 5,308.13.
The NASDAQ's rise was largely driven by the tech sector, particularly semiconductor stocks, as indicated by a 2.2% climb in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index to a two-month closing high. Gold stocks also showed considerable strength due to the precious metal's price reaching a new record high, although banking and telecom stocks moved downward.
The Dow's decline was influenced by profit-taking actions following the index's first-ever close above 40,000 points on Friday.
Oil prices declined on Monday amid concerns that the Federal Reserve might maintain higher interest rates for an extended period. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures settled at approximately $79.80, down $0.26 from the previous close.
