Chinese stocks jump after Golden Week break
Shares prices have risen sharply in China as stock markets reopened after the Golden Week holiday, buoyed by plans to boost the country’s ailing economy.
In volatile trade, the Shanghai Composite Index was up by around 6%, as more details about the proposed new measures were due to be announced.
Before the week-long holiday, benchmark stock indexes in mainland China and Hong Kong rose sharply after the government and central bank outlined new stimulus plans.
The measures include help for the crisis-hit property industry, support for the stock market, cash handouts for the poor and more government spending.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index, which was open for much of Golden Week, was trading lower on Tuesday morning.
Investors are focussed on announcements expected today from China’s National Development and Reform Commission.
Some analysts have voiced optimism about the stimulus measures, which they have called the most aggressive in China since the pandemic, while others have taken a more cautious approach.
“We will be watching to see if measures are more concentrated on supporting consumption, which could mark a focus on longer-term growth, or in investment, which could show a greater priority on shoring up immediate growth,” said a note from researchers at Dutch bank ING.
Officials are trying to boost confidence in the world’s second largest economy as concerns increase that it may miss its own 5% annual growth target.