China shares end at 7-1/2-mth high, extend rally on macro outlook

SHANGHAI: China's shares closed up on Tuesday at a 7-1/2-month high, but the pace of growth abated after Monday's aggressive rally.

The CSI300 index, which tracks the largest listed firms in Shenzhen and Shanghai, closed up 0.7 percent at 2,595.9. The Shanghai Composite Index closed at 2,325.7 points, up 0.6 percent.

Shanghai stock exchange volumes continued to prove robust, logging 165.6 billion yuan ($26.63 billion) worth of transactions, the highest since March 2012.

Analysts said that with financial shares in the lead, the Shanghai composite index, which sailed past the psychological 2,300-point barrier on Monday, could face little resistance until 2,500. Financials comprise the largest share of both the composite and large-cap indexes.