Chinese stocks end higher Monday, recovery expected

Chinese shares closed higher on Monday for the second consecutive trading day, sparking expectations of a recovery in this year's sluggish stock market. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index increased 1.07 percent, or 21.98 points, to end at 2,083.77. The Shenzhen Component Index finished at 8,265.79, up 0.93 percent, or 76.11 points. The Hushen 300 Index, which reflects the performance of China's Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges, closed at 2,271.05 points, up 24.29 points, or 1.08 percent. Combined turnover on the two bourses expanded to 152.8 billion yuan (24.3 billion U.S. dollars) from 147.6 billion yuan the previous trading day. Companies related to chinaware business enjoyed the biggest rises during Monday's trading. The agriculture sector also witnessed major rises as many investors are predicting the central government is likely to roll out favorable policies to boost agriculture shortly after the new year. Enterprises engaging in rare earth and the emerging technology of 3D printers saw increases in their stocks as well. Stock rises also swept the liquor sector, which is still in the shadow of an ingredients scandal. Jiugui Liquor, which suffered great losses due to a plasticizer contamination being detected in its produce, saw its stocks rise by nearly 6 percent. But Kweichow Moutai, a leading high-end liquor maker, stopped stock trading on Monday after a netizen using the name "Shui Jing Huang" claimed last week on Sina Weibo that a sample of the company's liquor had been found to contain toxic levels of plasticizer. The Chinese stock market's warming performance moved investors to bet whether the market, which has gone through a string of tumbles this year, will recover in the near future. Shanghai Composite Index dived after several falls to 1,949 points on Dec. 4, a near-four-year low. But the index rebounded the next day to above 2,000 points. Some experts attributed the rebound partly to positive signals sent from the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee. The political bureau said in a conference last week that China will try to boost domestic demand, adjust the economic structure and promote a stable increase of investment with optimized structure. Qiu Yanying, chief analyst with TX Investment Consulting, said whether the stock market has bottomed out depends on the country's macroeconomic situations. China's fixed assets investment, industrial output and retail sales saw rises in November, with mild inflation, according to official figures released on Sunday. China's investment, industrial output and consumption along with foreign trade have been waxing since August, said Zhuang Jian, an economist with the Asian Development Bank. As macroeconomic situations create room for stocks to rise, the much-maligned systemic flaws of the stock market may add uncertainties to the recovery. Lin Caiyi, a senior researcher with Guotai Junan Securities, said the sluggish stock market stemmed from lack of confidence among investors who are rewarded very little from the market. In the past 10 years, 65 percent of Chinese listed enterprises provided fewer returns to their investors than interest from banks, according to research by Hua Sheng, a renowned Chinese economist. On the other hand, more than 800 enterprises are waiting in line to launch initial public offerings (IPOs), according to data from the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC). IPOs may make some senior managers millionaires overnight. Yao Gang, vice chairman of the CSRC, told Xinhua that the commission aims to make the stock market more efficient in capital distribution and more fair in competition rules.