Chinese equities edge up 0.54%, led by real estate

Special Report:Global Financial Crisis

BEIJING, April 14 (Xinhua) -- Chinese equities ended Tuesday's session slightly up by 0.54 percent, bolstered by a strong rebound in real estate shares in the afternoon.

Analysts said market confidence remained robust on hopes of a recovery in the first quarter. They said steady performance of heavyweights and rises in sectors such as real estate and auto helped offset the sell-off pressure.

Property developers gained across the board on signs of a recovery in the market, as the National Bureau of Statistics said a day earlier that house prices in 70 Chinese major cities rose 0.2 percent in March from a month ago.

China Vanke, the nation's largest property developer by market value, added 3.06 percent to close at 8.76 yuan. Shanghai-based Shimao Co. rose the most by 9.98 percent to 11.57 yuan.

Auto producers gained broadly on speculation the government will reveal more measures to boost auto consumption and sale. SAIC Motor, China's largest auto maker, surged 8.41 percent to 10.57 yuan.

Electronics and information sectors also rose, as the country is expected to announce details on the stimulus package for the sectors. Shandong-based Langchao Cheeloosoft Co. rose the most by 9.98 percent to 12.23 yuan.

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the nation's biggest lender, gained 0.49 percent to 4.14 yuan. Sinopec rose 1.16 percent to 9.58 yuan, while PetroChina retreated 0.42 percent.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index finished the day at 2,527.18 points, up 13.48 points from the previous closing. The index has gained nearly 8 percent since Wednesday, advancing for four consecutive trading days.

The Shenzhen Component Index went up 1.45 percent, or 138.38 points to close at 9678.18.

Gains outnumbered losses by 569 to 278 in Shanghai and 560 to 172 in Shenzhen.

Combined turnover shrank to 252.32 billion yuan (37.1 billion U.S. dollars) from 280.46 billion yuan the previous trading day.

"It is highly possible the market will continue to advance next week," said Han Ming, a Guosen Securities analyst. He believed that an economic recovery, abundant liquidity and positive peripheral markets in the near term would support the upward movement.

China Merchants Securities said in a report that recent market performance reflected pro-optimistic anticipation in the Chinese economy.

It said strong economic data of the first quarter would strengthen such anticipation, but the market would experience corrections if the data fail market expectations.

China is expected to announce its first-quarter economic data Thursday.