China shares weighed down by energy firms, banks

Shenzhou International group

19/05/2021 05:27

BEIJING/SHANGHAI, May 19 (Reuters) - China shares slipped on
Wednesday after three straight sessions of gains, dragged down
by energy firms and banks, while digital currency-related stocks
also fell after Beijing banned financial and payment companies
from the cryptocurrency business.
 
** By the midday break, the Shanghai Composite index  .SSEC  was
down 0.41% to 3,514.38, while the blue-chip CSI300 index
 .CSI300  was lower 0.11%.
 
** The energy sector sub-index  .CSI000908  fell 1.63%, the
banking sector  .CSI000951  was down 1.39%, and the real estate
index  .CSI000952  dropped 1.23%.
 
** Investors are betting on the increasing momentum of A shares
and searching for opportunities in consumer blue-chips and new
energy vehicles firms, said Yang Delong, an investment manager
at First Seafront Fund Management Co.
 
** Trading in the mainland market is volatile, Yang said, citing
relative low valuations for A-shares and Hong Kong stocks amid
surging global equities.
 
** China has banned financial institutions and payment companies
from providing services related to cryptocurrency transactions,
and warned investors against speculative crypto trading.
 urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N2N60IH  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL2N2N510T
 
** The smaller Shenzhen index  .SZSC  rose 0.14%, the start-up
board ChiNext Composite index  .CNT  was higher by 0.88% and
Shanghai's tech-focused STAR50 index  .STAR50  climbed 0.58%​.
 
** Hong Kong markets were closed for a holiday.
 
** Around the region, MSCI's Asia ex-Japan stock index
 .MIAPJ0000PUS  was weaker by 0.33%, while Japan's Nikkei index
 .N225  was down 1.52%.

 (Reporting by Cheng Leng in Beijing, Luoyan Liu and Andrew
Galbraith in Shanghai; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)