China Bourse May Extend Tuesday's Losses

(RTTNews) - The China stock market has alternated between positive and negative finishes through the last five trading days since the end of the 10-day winning streak in which it had skyrocketed more than 780 points or 27.9 percent. The Shanghai Composite now sits just above the 3,200-point plateau and it may take further damage on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is negative thanks to a combination of weak economic and earnings news, while profit taking may also be in order. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses are expected to follow that lead.

The SCI finished sharply lower on Tuesday following heavy losses among the financial shares and resource stocks, while the property sector was mixed.

For the day, the index plummeted 83.03 points or 2.53 percent to finish at the daily low of 3,201.29 after trading as high as 3,285.21. The Shenzhen Composite Index slumped 39.73 point or 2.10 percent to end at 1,850.50.

Among the actives, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China surrendered 3.25 percent, while Bank of China dropped 2.33 percent, China Construction Bank stumbled 3.86 percent, China Merchants Bank fell 2.11 percent, Agricultural Bank of China skidded 2.19 percent, China Life Insurance plunged 3.00 percent, Jiangxi Copper plummeted 3.06 percent, Aluminum Corp of China (Chalco) crashed 6.38 percent, Yankuang Energy shed 1.92 percent, PetroChina tumbled 3.66 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) retreated 2.94 percent, Huaneng Power slumped 2.48 percent, China Shenhua Energy declined 2.02 percent, Gemdale gained 0.75 percent, Poly Developments rallied 1.30 percent and China Vanke sank 1.50 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is soft as the major averages opened mixed on Tuesday but quickly turned lower and saw all of them finish well under water.

The Dow tumbled 324.80 points or 0.75 percent to finish at 42,740..42, while the NASDAQ slumped 187.10 points or 1.01 percent to close at 18,315.59 and the S&P 500 sank 44.59 points or 0.76 percent to end at 5,815.26.

The pullback on Wall Street reflected profit taking as traders looked to cash in on recent strength in the markets after the Dow and S&P hit record closing highs on Monday.

Corporate earnings also weighed, led lower by the likes of UnitedHealth (UNH) and Citigroup (C), although Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) rallied on its results.

On the U.S. economic front, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported that regional manufacturing activity has returned to contraction in October.

Oil prices fell sharply on Tuesday as fears about supply disruptions faded on reports that Israel will avoid targeting Iran's oil sites. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for November sank $3.25 or 4.4 percent at $70.58 a barrel.