SHANGHAI: Chinese shares closed higher on Wednesday, with high-tech stocks and new energy companies leading the charge, after global investors bought into the markets following a Ukraine crisis-led sell-off in the previous session.

The blue-chip CSI300 index rose 1.1%, to 4,623.05, while the Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.9% to 3,489.15 points.

** High-tech shares were among the day's strongest gainers, with the CSI All Share Semiconductor sub-index jumping 6%, Shanghai's tech-focused STAR50 index up 4% and the CSI info tech sub-index 3.5% higher.

** The New Energy sub-index added 3.5%, with Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL) up 3%.

** Gains in tech and new energy shares were fuelled by net purchases from overseas investors.

** Northbound inflows through the Stock Connect totalled 5.4 billion yuan on Wednesday, according to Refinitiv data.

** The CSI China Aviation Industry Aerospace Defence Index surged 4.6%. Western nations and Japan on Tuesday punished Russia with new sanctions for ordering troops into separatist regions of eastern Ukraine and threatened to go further if Moscow launched an all-out invasion of its neighbour.

** China has never thought sanctions are the best way to solve problems, its foreign ministry said on Wednesday, when asked if the Asian nation would join Western countries in sanctioning Russia over Ukraine.

** In contrast, the banks index slipped 0.9% and the real estate index slumped 2.4%, after a commentary in a state-backed paper warned against the fast property market growth.

** China must guard against excessive policy easing in the property sector pushing up the real estate market too fast, a commentary in the state-backed Economic Daily said.

** The smaller Shenzhen index was up 1.75% and the start-up board ChiNext Composite index was higher by 2.8%.