China Shares May End Losing Streak

The China stock market has ticked lower in two straight sessions, although it has given up a little more than just two points in that span. The Shanghai Composite Index now rests just above the 3,365-point plateau and it's expected to see mild upside on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is mixed to higher on Covid-19 vaccine rollouts and hopes for stimulus. The European markets were up and the U.S. bourses were mixed and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.

The SCI finished barley lower on Wednesday following mixed performances from the financials, properties and resource stocks.

For the day, the index eased 0.25 points or 0.01 percent to finish at 3,366.98 after trading between 3,359.17 and 3,378.66. The Shenzhen Composite Index lost 7.92 points or 0.35 percent to end at 2,248.51.

Among the actives, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China fell 0.20 percent, while China Merchants Bank shed 0.65 percent, China Minsheng Bank collected 0.19 percent, China Life Insurance climbed 1.32 percent, Jiangxi Copper improved 0.26 percent, Aluminum Corp of China (Chalco) sank 0.55 percent, Yanzhou Coal perked 0.39 percent, China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec) rose 0.25 percent, China Shenhua Energy added 0.45 percent, Gemdale was up 0.22 percent, Poly Developments gained 0.50 percent, China Vanke increased 0.18 percent and PetroChina, Bank of China, China Construction Bank and Bank of Communications were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is cautiously optimistic as stocks showed a lack of direction Wednesday before ending mixed, although the tech-heavy NASDAQ hit a new record closing high.

The Dow shed 44.77 points or 0.15 percent to finish at 30,154.54, while the NASDAQ jumped 63.13 points or 0.50 percent to end at 12,658.19 and the S&P 500 rose 6.55 points or 0.18 percent to close at 3,701.17.

The mixed close on Wall Street came after the Fed announced its widely expected decision to leave interest rates unchanged while also revealing plans to continue its asset purchase program until the economy shows substantial progressed towards the central bank's goals of maximum employment and price stability.

Earlier in the day, traders were reluctant to make significant moves as they weighed optimism about a new fiscal stimulus bill against disappointing retail sales data. Traders have remained optimistic that lawmakers will eventually reach an agreement even though a deal on a new relief package has remained beyond their grasp for months.

In economic news, the Commerce Department said that retail sales slumped much more than expected in November. Also, the National Association of Home Builders reported that homebuilder confidence pulled back more than expected in December after reaching a record high in November.

Crude oil prices climbed Wednesday for a third straight session amid vaccine rollouts and optimism about fiscal stimulus in the U.S. A drop in crude inventories in the U.S. last week also contributed to oil's rise. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for January ended up $0.20 or 0.4 percent at $47.82 a barrel.

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