China Stock Market Tipped To Open In The Red

(RTTNews) - The China stock market has moved higher in back-to-back sessions, collecting almost 35 points or 0.8 percent along the way. The Shanghai Composite Index now sits just above the 4,085-point plateau although it's likely to be stuck in neutral on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets remains grim thanks to ongoing geopolitical concerns in the Middle East. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses are expected to follow that lead.

The SCI finished barely higher on Tuesday following gains from the energy companies, weakness from the resource stocks and mixed performances from the financials and properties.

For the day, the index perked 2.95 points or 0.07 percent to finish at 4,085.08 after trading between 4,062.13 and 4,086.64. The Shenzhen Composite Index eased 0.93 points or 0.03 percent to end at 2,761.35.

Among the actives, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China collected 0.66 percent, while Bank of China improved 0.73 percent, Agricultural Bank of China dipped 0.14 percent, Bank of Communications shed 0.43 percent, China Life Insurance sank 0.74 percent, Jiangxi Copper dropped 0.94 percent, Aluminum Corp of China (Chalco) declined 1.30 percent, Yankuang Energy soared 4.05 percent, PetroChina eased 0.09 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) fell 0.54 percent, Huaneng Power vaulted 1.59 percent, China Shenhua Energy jumped 1.66 percent, Gemdale lost 0.72 percent, Poly Developments added 0.51 percent, China Vanke slumped 0.76 percent and China Merchants Bank was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is soft as the major averages opened higher on Tuesday but quickly turned lower and remained in the red for the remainder of the day, ending at session lows.

The Dow dropped 293.18 points of 0.59 percent to finish at 49,149.38, while the NASDAQ sank 144.43 points or 0.59 percent to end at 24,259.96 and the S&P 500 lost 45.13 points or 0.63 percent to close at 7,064.01.

The weakness that emerged on Wall Street came as the price of crude oil has moved sharply higher over the course of the day.

Crude oil prices continued to surge on Tuesday as the ongoing shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz kept supply disruption concerns alive. West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery was up $3.99 or 4.45 percent at $93.60 per barrel.

Earlier in the session, the markets benefitted from positive corporate earnings news from the likes of UnitedHealth (UNH) and homebuilder D.R. Horton (DHI), both of which handily beat expectations.

Early buying interest was also generated in reaction to a Commerce Department report showing retail sales in the U.S. surged by more than expected in the month of March.