BEIJING, July 15 -- Chinese shares rose for the third consecutive trading day on Tuesday, led by state-owned enterprises (SOEs) as six of these heavyweights were nominated to pilot reforms in ownership, management and supervision.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index edged up 0.18 percent to finish at 2,070.36 points. The Shenzhen Component Index gained 0.35 percent to close at 7,304.41 points.

The combined turnover of the two bourses expanded to 249.27 billion yuan (40.54 billion U.S. dollars) on Tuesday from 235.05 billion yuan the previous trading day.

The State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission announced on Tuesday afternoon that reforms will be piloted by the State Development & Investment Corporation, China National Cereals, Oils and Foodstuffs Corporation (COFCO), China National Building Materials Group, China Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection Group, Xinxing Cathay International Group, and China National Pharmaceutical Group (Sinopharm).

COFCO Property, a leading real estate firm affiliated to COFCO, surged 9.92 percent to close at 3.99 yuan per share. COFCO Biochemical (Anhui) Co., jumped 8.88 percent to 4.66 yuan per share. Sinopharm rose 1.63 percent to 23.65 yuan per share.