China Stock Market May Stop The Bleeding On Friday

(RTTNews) - The China stock market has tracked lower in two straight sessions, sinking more than 15 points or 0.5 percent along the way. The Shanghai Composite Index now sits just beneath the 3,290-point plateau although it's predicted to find traction on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat, with bargain hunting expected after selling and uncertainty earlier in the week. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were up and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

The SCI finished slightly lower on Thursday following mixed performances from the financials and resource stocks.

For the day, the index eased 3.67 points or 0.11 percent to finish at 3,287.48 after trading between 3,275.36 and 3,307.44. The Shenzhen Composite Index slipped 5.09 points or 0.24 percent to end at 2,154.73.

Among the actives, China Construction Bank dipped 0.18 percent, while China Merchants Bank collected 0.29 percent, China Life Insurance eased 0.03 percent, Aluminum Corp of China (Chalco) dropped 0.88 percent, Yankuang Energy surged 3.81 percent, PetroChina perked 0.19 percent, China Shenhua Energy added 0.57 percent, Gemdale advanced 0.82 percent, Poly Developments rose 0.26 percent, China Vanke gained 0.23 percent and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Bank of China, Bank of Communications, Jiangxi Copper, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) and Huaneng Power were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street ends up firm as the major averages opened higher on Thursday, slumped midday but rebounded to end firmly in the green.

The Dow climbed 108.82 points or 0.33 percent to finish at 33,153.91, while the NASDAQ jumped 83.33 points or 0.72 percent to close at 11,590.40 and the S&P 500 rose 21.27 points or 0.53 percent to end at 4,012.32.

Buying interest remained somewhat subdued as interest rate concerns continued to hang over the markets following Wednesday's release of the minutes of the latest Federal Reserve meeting.

The Fed minutes offered few surprised but reiterated that the central bank will continue to raise interest rates in its battle against inflation.

In economic news, the Labor Department noted an unexpected dip in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits last week, while the Commerce Department said the U.S. economy grew by slightly less than estimated Q4 of 2022.

After trending lower in recent sessions, the price of crude oil showed a strong move back to the upside on Thursday, despite a bigger than expected increase in U.S. crude oil inventories. West Texas Intermediate crude for April delivery spiked $1.44 or 2.0 percent to $75.39 a barrel.