China stocks flat

China stocks ended flat on Thursday in lacklustre trading, as investors awaited more policy signals ahead of a key meeting of the ruling Communist Party next week. The blue-chip CSI300 index was unchanged at 3,870.67, while the Shanghai Composite Index was also flat at 2,940.92.

China's ruling Communist Party will hold a key meeting of its senior leadership next week after an unusually long delay since the last one, state media said, as the country grapples with issues ranging from a slowing economy to unrest in Hong Kong. In the latest effort to ward off a sharper economic slowdown, China said on Wednesday it will implement new regulations that aim to make it easier to do business.

Policy support is key to underpinning the A-share market in an earnings season when investors ponder over the implications of a bruising Sino-US trade war. China's monetary policy easing is a general trend as the country's economy slows, though Beijing's leeway would be limited in the fourth quarter by increasing inflation pressure as the consumer price index (CPI) reached 3.0% in September, Zhang Qiyao, analyst with Guosheng Securities noted in report.

Without risks that could lead to a systemic correction, or catalysts that point to a big rally, the market could remain basically rangebound in the fourth quarter, Zhang added. At 0714 GMT, the yuan was quoted at 7.0666 per US dollar, nearly unchanged from the previous close of 7.0667.

So far this year, the Shanghai stock index is up 17.9% and the CSI300 has risen 28.6%, while China's H-share index listed in Hong Kong is up 4%. Shanghai stocks have risen 1.23% this month. About 12.65 billion shares were traded on the Shanghai exchange, roughly 72.1% of the market's 30-day moving average of 17.56 billion shares a day. The volume in the previous trading session was 12.38 billion.