(RTTNews) - The China stock market has climbed higher in three straight sessions, accumulating almost 40 points or 1.3 percent along the way. The Shanghai Composite Index now rests just above the 2,955-point plateau although it's looking at a soft start for Wednesday's trade.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is soft, with the FOMC meeting later today affording investors with an opportunity to lock in gains. The European and U.S. markets were mostly lower and the Asian markets figure to follow suit.
The SCI finished modestly higher on Tuesday following mixed performances from the financial shares, property stocks and oil and insurance companies.
For the day, the index collected 18.34 points or 0.62 percent to finish at 2,956.11 after trading between 2,932.94 and 2,957.12. The Shenzhen Composite Index rose 12.44 points or 0.67 percent to end at 1,869.33.
Among the actives, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China added 0.38 percent, while China Construction Bank collected 0.47 percent, China Merchants Bank shed 0.39 percent, China Life Insurance advanced 0.87 percent, Ping An Insurance fell 0.29 percent, PetroChina increased 0.23 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) dipped 0.23 percent, Baoshan Iron gathered 0.44 percent, Gemdale climbed 0.88 percent, Poly Developments perked 0.27 percent, China Vanke sank 0.60 percent and Bank of China was unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is mixed to lower as stocks mostly gave ground on Tuesday, although tech stocks lifted the NASDAQ to a record closing high.
The Dow dropped 300.14 points or 1.09 percent to finish at 27.272.30, while the NASDAQ added 29.01 points or 0.29 percent to end at 9,953.75 and the S&P 500 fell 25.21 points or 0.78 percent to close at 3,207.18.
The weakness on Wall Street partly reflected profit taking, as traders cashed in on the strong gains posted in recent sessions. Selling pressure was subdued, however, with stocks holding on to the bulk of their gains as traders generally remain optimistic about a quick economic recovery.
Traders also seemed reluctant to make more significant moves ahead of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement later today. The Fed is not expected to announce any significant policy changes, although traders will pay close attention to the central bank's economic outlook.
Crude oil prices surged on Tuesday as optimism about production cuts outweighed concerns about a jump in new coronavirus infections in central America and some parts across the globe. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for July ended up $0.75 or 2 percent at $38.94 a barrel.
Closer to home, China will release May figures for consumer and producer prices later this morning.
Consumer prices are predicted to fall 0.5 percent on month and rise 2.7 percent on year following the 0.9 percent monthly drop and the 3.3 percent yearly gain in April. Producer prices are tipped to sink an annual 3.3 percent after falling 3.1 percent in the previous month.
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