SHANGHAI, April 7 — China stocks ended up more than two per cent today as markets resumed trading after a long weekend, with investor sentiment lifted by the government’s latest stimulus to shore up the world’s second-largest economy and a drop in cases of the new coronavirus.
** At close, the Shanghai Composite index was up 2.05 per cent at 2,820.76.
** The blue-chip CSI300 index was up 2.28 per cent, with its financial sector sub-index higher by 1.52 per cent, consumer staples up 3.11 per cent, real estate up 1.23 per cent and healthcare up 2.63 per cent.
** The smaller Shenzhen index ended up 3.18 per cent and startups board ChiNext Composite index was higher by 3.31 per cent.
** China’s central bank said on Friday it was cutting the amount of cash that small banks must hold in reserve, releasing around 400 billion yuan (US$56.38 billion) in liquidity to shore up an economy jolted by the coronavirus outbreak.
** China has about 4,000 small and mid-sized banks. The latest cuts would lower their RRR to 6 per cent.
** Overall, China is stepping up its domestic counter-cyclical measures to combat the virus hit, though investors need to pay attention to the negative impact on external demand given uncertainties around the outbreak overseas, Sinolin Securities analysts said in a report.
** Mainland China reported on Tuesday a drop in cases of the new coronavirus after closing its borders to virtually all foreigners to curb imported infections, while the central city of Wuhan, the epicentre of the outbreak, did not record any virus-related deaths for the first time since the outbreak began.
** Around the region, MSCI’s Asia ex-Japan stock index was firmer by 2.09 per cent, and Japan’s Nikkei index closed up 2.01 per cent.
** At 07:26 GMT, the yuan was quoted at 7.0608 per US dollar, 0.47 per cent firmer than the previous close of 7.0938.
** As of 07:27 GMT, China’s A-shares were trading at a premium of 26.08 per cent over Hong Kong-listed H-shares. — Reuters
