Win Streak May End For China Stock Market

(RTTNews) - The China stock market has finished higher in three straight sessions, collecting more than 65 points or 1.6 percent along the way. The Shanghai Composite Index now sits just above the 4,130-point plateau although it may run out of steam on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is soft on fading optimism over the outlook for interest rates. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were slightly lower and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

The SCI finished slightly higher on Wednesday following gains from the resource stocks, weakness from the properties and a mixed picture from the financial sector.

For the day, the index rose 3.61 points or 0.09 percent to finish at 4,131.98 after trading between 4,122.43 and 4,142.56. The Shenzhen Composite Index fell 6.52 points or 0.24 percent to end at 2,695.16.

Among the actives, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China dipped 0.14 percent, while Agricultural Bank of China collected 0.89 percent, China Merchants Bank perked 0.15 percent, China Life Insurance sank 0.81 percent, Jiangxi Copper vaulted 1.56 percent, Aluminum Corp of China (Chalco) climbed 1.29 percent, Yankuang Energy soared 4.78 percent, PetroChina improved 0.84 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) expanded 1.24 percent, China Shenhua Energy gained 0.89 percent, Gemdale slumped 1.16 percent, Poly Developments eased 0.15 percent, China Vanke was up 0.20 percent and Bank of China and Huaneng Power were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is weak as the major averages opened higher but quickly headed south and hugged the line for the balance of the day, finally ending slightly under water.

The Dow shed 66.74 points or 0.13 percent to finish at 50,121.40, while the NASDAQ slumped 36.01 points or 0.16 percent to close at 23.066.47 and the S&P 500 eased 0.34 points or 0.00 percent to end at 6,941.47.

The initial strength on Wall Street followed the release of a closely watched Labor Department report showing employment in the U.S. increased more than expected in January.

However, the report also showed a significant downward revision to job growth in 2025, with the increase in employment revised to 181,000 jobs from 584,000 jobs.

The stronger-than-expected job growth in January may also have reduced the likelihood of near-term interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve, offsetting the initial positive reaction.

Crude oil prices climbed on Wednesday amid heightening tension between the U.S. and Iran, with Israel's intervention exacerbating the standoff. West Texas Intermediate crude for March delivery was up $0.57 or 0.89 percent at $64.53 per barrel.