Shanghai Stock Market Sets New RecordThe Shanghai composite A and B-share index breached the 2,200-point benchmark Thursday to hit a record high of 2,205.01 points during the morning session.The composite index ended the session down 6.8 points at 2,192.71 with A and B-shares closing mixed. The Shanghai Stock Exchange's B-share index inched up 0.7 points to 206.92 on turnover of 150.98 million dollars while the A-share index slid 7.47 points to 2,285.86 on moderate turnover of 6.81 billion yuan (820 million dollars). Sentiment towards A-shares turned cautious after the composite index breached the psychological 2,200-point level, dealers said, noting trading lacked direction despite the new record. "The composite index is unlikely to stand stable above 2,200 points at present, since securities regulators have not announced the final plans of the state shares floatation which is weighing on market sentiment," said China Eagle Securities analyst Ma Jian. Currently, the government owns around 70 percent of most state-owned listed companies and those shares are not publicly tradeable. Any move to sell off government-held shares would hugely dilute market liquidity. B-shares closed the morning session higher in volatile trade, dealers said, adding the B-share rally was losing steam and the market might undergo a mild correction in upcoming sessions. |
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