Shanghai index declines for first time in three days

By Lydia Chen  |   2008-7-10  |     ONLINE EDITION

SHANGHAI'S key stock index fell for the first time in three trading days today as most blue chips were shunned by investors over concern a slowdown in the United States economy will reduce demand for the nation's exports.

The Shanghai Composite Index lost 1.54 percent, or 45.10 points, to 2,875.45 at 3pm.

Losers in the Shanghai market outnumbered gainers 669 to 145 while six remained unchanged.

The Shenzhen Composite Index, which tracks the smaller domestic stock exchange, was down 1.69 percent, or 14.99 points, to 870.01.

China reported its trade surplus fell more than 20 percent in June as export growth plunged, according to the General Administration of Customs today.

Air China Ltd, China's largest international carrier, was among airlines that dived today.

Air China retreated 4.14 percent to 9.96 yuan (US$1.45) while China Southern Airlines, the country's biggest carrier by fleet size, lost 3.79 percent to 7.87 yuan.

Air China said it won approval from the nation's securities regulator to issue as many as 400 million A shares on the mainland stock market.

The trade surplus dropped for the third-straight month in June, decreasing 20.6 percent from a year earlier to US$21.35 billion, the administration said on its Website this morning.

Exports increased 17.6 percent last month to US$121.53 billion, compared to growth of 28.1 percent a month earlier. Imports shot up 31 percent to US$100.18 billion last month, down 9 percentage points from May, the administration said.

Industrial Bank Co, the Chinese lender part-owned by a unit of HSBC Holdings Plc, declined 2.30 percent to 27.17 yuan. Minsheng Bank, the only listed privately-owned bank, lost 1.58 percent to 6.23 yuan.

Industrial Bank said first-half profit may have jumped by more than 70 percent as interest margins widened and fee income "rose substantially." Net income in the first half of 2007 was 3.6 billion yuan.