No Help Yet For China Stock Market

(RTTNews) - The China stock market has finished lower in four straight sessions, sinking more than 115 points or 3.9 percent along the way. The Shanghai Composite Index now sits just beneath the 2,975-point plateau and it's likely to open lower again on Tuesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is soft on concerns over economic growth and the outlook for interest rates. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses are tipped to follow that lead.

The SCI finished sharply lower on Monday following losses from the financial shares and resource stocks, while the properties were mixed and the oil companies offered support.

For the day, the index slumped 50.25 points or 1.66 percent to finish at 2,974.15 after trading between 2,968.28 and 3,029.45. The Shenzhen Composite Index retreated 41.49 points or 2.17 percent to end at 1,870.50.

Among the actives, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China rose 0.23 percent, while Bank of China shed 0.65 percent, China Merchants Bank plunged 5.50 percent, Bank of Communications dipped 0.22 percent, China Life Insurance declined 1.39 percent, Jiangxi Copper lost 0.52 percent, Aluminum Corp of China (Chalco) retreated 1.21 percent, Yankuang Energy strengthened 1.28 percent, PetroChina rallied 2.73 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) climbed 1.17 percent, Huaneng Power eased 0.13 percent, China Shenhua Energy advanced 1.07 percent, Gemdale gained 0.96 percent, Poly Developments jumped 1.78 percent, China Vanke sank 0.39 percent, China Fortune Land slumped 2.40 percent and China Construction Bank was unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is negative as the major averages opened flat on Monday but quickly turned lower, staying that way for the balance of the session.

The Dow dropped 93.91 points or 0.32 percent to finish at 29,202.88, while the NASDAQ tumbled 110.30 points or 1.04 percent to end at 10,542.10 and the S&P 500 slipped 27.27 points or 0.75 percent to close at 3,612.39.

The soft action on Wall Street may be partially attributed to light turnover, with many investors away from their desks for the Columbus Day holiday.

Soft sentiment still governed the markets after the Labor Department's closely watched monthly jobs report last week failed to ease concerns about the outlook for interest rates by coming in stronger than economists had anticipated.

U.S. inflation data, minutes from the Fed's September meeting and reports on retail sales and consumer sentiment due this week will provide more insights into policymakers' view of where inflation stands and the outlook for the future path of interest rates.

Crude oil prices drifted lower on Monday as soft data from China raised concerns about the outlook for energy demand. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for November sank $1.51 or 1.6 percent at 91.13 a barrel.