Following a recent pattern of mixed results over the past four trading days, the China stock market has seen fluctuations after a significant increase of over 110 points, amounting to a 3.3% rise, marked the end of a two-day upward streak. Currently, the Shanghai Composite Index stands slightly above the 3,470-point mark, with prospects pointing to a potential rise in Tuesday's opening.
The outlook for Asian markets is predominantly optimistic, buoyed by momentum from the recent U.S. election outcomes. Both European and U.S. markets experienced gains, setting a positive precedent that Asian exchanges are expected to follow.
The Shanghai Composite finished with a modest uptick, but gains were tempered by underperformance in the financial and property sectors. Specifically, the index rose by 17.77 points or 0.51% to close at 3,470.07, navigating a range between 3,416.73 and 3,471.12. Meanwhile, the Shenzhen Composite Index surged by 38.89 points or 1.86%, ending the day at 2,133.57.
Among notable activities, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China experienced a 1.15% decline, Bank of China fell by 1.03%, China Construction Bank dropped 1.25%, and China Merchants Bank decreased by 1.21%. Agricultural Bank of China saw a 1.47% fall, while China Life Insurance suffered a significant drop of 3.19%. Other losses included Jiangxi Copper with a 0.47% reduction, Aluminum Corp of China (Chalco) down by 1.29%, and Yankuang Energy slipping 1.64%. PetroChina decreased by 1.94%, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) by 1.58%, and China Shenhua Energy saw a 2.02% decline. Poly Developments and Gemdale both fell by 2.42%, with China Vanke down 2.21%. On a brighter note, Huaneng Power saw a slight increase of 0.41%.
Wall Street presented a cautiously optimistic tone with major indices opening higher on Monday. They largely held steady throughout the session, culminating in minor gains, which led to fresh record closing highs. The Dow advanced by 304.14 points or 0.69% to settle at 44,294.13. The NASDAQ inched up by 11.99 points or 0.06% to reach 19,298.76, while the S&P 500 increased by 5.81 points or 0.10% to finish at 6,001.35.
Investor sentiment remains favorable, underpinned by expectations that policies associated with Donald Trump, such as tax cuts and deregulation, will enhance corporate earnings.
In commodities, oil futures saw a sharp decline on Monday, pressured by a stronger U.S. dollar and demand concerns. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for December fell by $2.34, or 3.6%, concluding at $68.04 per barrel.
