Investors are awaiting a key set of China’s data releases, such as retail sales, industrial output, and investment, on Friday. (EPA Images pic)
HONG KONG: Chinese stocks edged up on Thursday, led by gains in new energy sector shares, while investors awaited key economic data due on Friday.
The Shanghai Composite index was up 0.7% at 4,029.50 to its highest since 2015 and ended a two-day decline. China’s blue-chip index climbed 1.2%.
Leading gains, the CSI New Energy Vehicle Index surged 6.2% to a three-year high, and the New Energy Index rallied 4.7% in its biggest single-day gain in two weeks.
Battery maker CATL surged 7.6% to near a record high last seen in October, and miner Tianqi Lithium jumped 10%.
China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology will announce a comprehensive plan to boost the new energy battery sector and promote its infrastructure usage, a senior official said on Thursday.
The artificial intelligence sector and chip shares climbed 0.6% and 0.7%, respectively, to recover some losses seen earlier this week.
“The market will likely continue consolidating and building momentum around the 4,000-point level in the short term, which is beneficial for solidifying the market foundation and accumulating strength for subsequent movements,” analysts at Yingda Securities said in a note.
“It could help set the stage for further breaking new highs for the rest of the year.”
In Hong Kong, the benchmark Hang Seng Index added 0.6%to a one-month high. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index also reversed earlier losses to gain 0.6%.
Alibaba rallied 3.3% after a Bloomberg News report that the firm is preparing a revamp of flagship AI app to resemble ChatGPT.
Elsewhere, investors are awaiting China’s key set of data releases such as retail sales, industrial output, and investment on Friday, to get a sense of the economic recovery and any implications for the policy outlook.
