Shanghai stocks firm after upbeat GDP data

Shanghai stocks rose on Friday, as China's upbeat first-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) data added more signs to a continued solid recovery in the world's second largest economy. ** The CSI300 index was unchanged at 4,948.41 points at the end of the morning session, while the Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.5% to 3,414.74 points.

Shanghai stocks rose on Friday, as China's upbeat first-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) data added more signs to a continued solid recovery in the world's second largest economy.

** The CSI300 index was unchanged at 4,948.41 points at the end of the morning session, while the Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.5% to 3,414.74 points. ** For the week, CSI300 shed 1.7%, while the SSEC slipped 1%.

** China's economic recovery quickened sharply in the first quarter from a coronavirus-induced slump earlier last year, propelled by stronger demand at home and abroad and continued government support for smaller firms. ** GDP jumped a record 18.3% in the first quarter from a year earlier, official data showed on Friday, slower than the 19% forecast by economists in a Reuters poll, and following 6.5% growth in the fourth quarter last year.

** "The GDP data is a bit better than my expectations, while the robust corporate earnings for the year of 2020 and the first quarter of 2021 could also help provide support for the A-share market," said Yan Kaiwen, an analyst with China Fortune Securities. ** However, market gains were curbed by ongoing tensions between Beijing and Washington.

** U.S. President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga will present a united front on Taiwan, China's most sensitive territorial issue, in a summit meeting on Friday, according to a senior U.S. administration official. ** Separately, U.S. Congressional China hawks are urging the Biden administration to restrict sales of chip-making tools to Chinese companies, similar to an action taken against telecommunications equipment maker Huawei Technologies Co.

** In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index added 0.1%, to 28,808.23 points, while the Hong Kong China Enterprises Index gained 0.4%, to 10,945.79.