China shares edge higher in thin trade; Hong Kong down

China shares rebounded cautiously on Tuesday in thin trade as investors look to government policies to support markets and counter signs of slowing domestic growth amid a weakening of global risk appetite.

At the midday break, the Shanghai Composite Index was 0.3 per cent higher at 2,591.75, reports Reuters.

Trade volumes have been relatively light, with 5.76 billion shares traded so far on the Shanghai exchange, roughly 32.6 per cent of the market’s 30-day moving average of 17.65 billion shares a day.

China’s blue-chip CSI300 index was up 0.29 per cent, with its financial sector sub-index higher by 0.32 per cent, the consumer staples sector up 0.45 per cent, the real estate index up 2.21 per cent.

Chinese H-shares listed in Hong Kong fell 0.48 per cent to 10,223.84, while the Hang Seng Index was down 0.11 per cent at 25,723.04.

The smaller Shenzhen index was up 0.6 per cent and the start-up board ChiNext Composite index was higher by 0.47 per cent.

The largest percentage losses in the Shanghai index were Zhejiang Langdi Group Co Ltd, down 10 per cent, followed by Jiangsu Kanion Pharmaceutical Co Ltd, losing 7.06 per cent and XI An Hongsheng Technology Co Ltd, down by 5.03 per cent.

So far this year, the Shanghai stock index is down 21.85 per cent, while China’s H-share index is down 12.3 per cent. Shanghai stocks have declined 0.14 per cent this month.