China Bourse May Challenge Resistance At 3,200 Points

(RTTNews) - The China stock market has tracked higher in three straight sessions, gathering more than 50 points or 1.8 percent in that span. The Shanghai Composite Index now sits just above the 3,170-point plateau and it's tipped to open in the green again on Tuesday. The global forecast for the Asian markets is cautiously optimistic, with strength likely from the technology shares. The European markets were up and the U.S. bourses were mixed and the Asian markets are tipped to open to the upside. The SCI finished modestly higher again on Monday following gains from the resource and energy companies, while the financials were soft and the properties were mixed. For the day, the index added 17.12 points or 0.54 percent to finish at 3,171.15 after trading between 3,155.99 and 3,174.27. The Shenzhen Composite Index gained 8.39 points or 0.47 percent to end at 1,793.98. Among the actives, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China dipped 0.18 percent, while Bank of China shed 0.45 percent, China Construction Bank lost 0.42 percent, China Merchants Bank retreated 1.28 percent, Bank of Communications sank 0.57 percent, China Life Insurance advanced 1.00 percent, Jiangxi Copper skyrocketed 5.87 percent, Aluminum Corp of China (Chalco) surged 4.76 percent, Yankuang Energy soared 3.54 percent, PetroChina rallied 2.92 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) climbed 1.10 percent, Huaneng Power jumped 1.70 percent, China Shenhua Energy accelerated 2.61 percent, Gemdale spiked 5.25 percent, Poly Developments slumped 1.07 percent and China Vanke was up 2.00 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is inconsistent as the major averages opened mixed on Monday and closed in the same fashion.

The Dow stumbled 196.82 points or 0.49 percent to finish at 39,806.77, while the NASDAQ jumped 108.91 points or 0.65 percent to close at a record high 16,794.88 and the S&P 500 rose 4.86 points or 0.09 percent to end at 5,308.13.

The advance by the NASDAQ reflected strength in the tech sector, with semiconductor stocks leading the way as the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index jumped by 2.2 percent to a two-month closing high.

Gold stocks also saw notable strength on the day, as the price of the precious metal reached a new record high, while banking stocks and telecom stocks moved to the downside.

The Dow was hit by profit taking after the index closed above 40,000 points for the first time on Friday.

Oil prices settled lower on Monday, weighed down by concerns the Federal Reserve will likely keep interest rates higher for a longer time. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures dropped to around $79.80, down $0.26 from the previous close.