Shanghai stocks end higher, investors cautious ahead of US and China data

SHANGHAI: Chinese shares recouped some of its earlier losses, with the benchmark Shanghai stocks finishing slightly higher on Tuesday, while investors were cautious ahead of a key US inflation report and a string of domestic economic data due later this week.

The focus this week is on US inflation data due on Wednesday. China is also scheduled to release March inflation, trade and credit lending data this week.

China is also due to report its first-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) data and activity indicators next week.

“We think China’s economy will find a firmer footing in 2024,” analysts at HSBC said in a note. “The economy should expand at around 4.9%, a touch slower than in 2023, but an arguably better performance, given that base effects will no longer flatter the numbers.

Although we expect the property sector to stabilise, it will remain a drag for some time yet. There are also pockets of growth, driven by support for areas, such as manufacturing investment.”

China’s Premier Li Qiang said during a Monday symposium with economic experts and businessmen that the country will make macro policies more consistent and pay attention to precise policy implementation, state media reported. At the close, the Shanghai Composite index was up 0.05% at 3,048.54.

The blue-chip CSI300 index was down 0.08% at 3,533.49 points, with its financial sector sub-index lower by 0.35%, the consumer staples sector down 0.31%, the real estate index down 0.5% and the healthcare sub-index up 1.51%.

The smaller Shenzhen index ended up 0.82% and the start-up board ChiNext Composite index was higher by 1.14%.

At the close of trade, the Hang Seng index was up 95.22 points or 0.57% at 16,828.07. The Hang Seng China Enterprises index rose 0.45% to 5,895.32.

The sub-index of the Hang Seng tracking energy shares dipped 0.6%, while the IT sector rose 0.42%, the financial sector ended 0.55% higher and the property sector gained 0.46%.

Around the region, MSCI’s Asia ex-Japan stock index was firmer by 0.58%, while Japan’s Nikkei index closed up 1.08%.