Chinese stocks surge over Fed optimism

Shanghai stocks edged higher on Thursday after the U.S. Federal Reserve took a more accommodative stance at its policy meeting. The blue-chip CSI300 index was unchanged at 3,836.89 points, while the Shanghai Composite Index closed up 0.3 per cent at 3,101.46 points. In comments at the end of a two-day policy meeting on Wednesday, the Fed abandoned projections for any interest rate hikes this year amid signs of an economic slowdown and said it would halt the steady decline of its balance sheet in September.

Meanwhile, there are concerns about valuations as major Chinese stock indexes trade near nine-month highs, amid lingering concerns about trade talks with the United States. U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday warned that Washington may leave tariffs on Chinese goods for a "substantial period" to ensure Beijing's compliance with any trade deal.

China-U.S. trade talks are set to resume next week. Around the region, MSCI's Asia ex-Japan stock index was firmer by 0.4 per cent. At 07:07 GMT, the yuan was quoted at 6.6794 per U.S. dollar, 0.22 per cent firmer than the previous close of 6.6943. The largest percentage gainers in the main Shanghai Composite index were Gansu Yasheng Industrial Group Co Ltd, up 10.14 per cent, followed by Aurora Optoelectronics Co Ltd, gaining 10.1 per cent and Chengdu B-ray Media Co Ltd, adding 10.09 per cent.

The largest percentage losers in the Shanghai index were Guangzhou Restaurant Co Ltd, down 7.53 per cent, followed by Wuxi Hongsheng Heat Exchanger Manufacturing Co Ltd, which lost 6.52 per cent and Shanghai Greencourt Investment Group Co Ltd that declined 6.31 per cent. So far this year, the Shanghai stock index is up 24.4 per cent and the CSI300 has risen 27.4 per cent, while China's H-share index listed in Hong Kong is up 14.4 per cent. Shanghai stocks have risen 5.46 per cent this month. As of 07:08 GMT, China's A-shares were trading at a premium of 24.30 per cent over the Hong Kong-listed H-shares.