Chinese stocks ended slightly lower on Tuesday as investors remained cautious about the growth prospects of the world's second-largest economy.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index moved down 0.38 percent, or 8.03 points, to close at 2,106, while the Shenzhen Component Index closed at 8,589.86, down 64.88 points, or 0.75 percent
Combined turnover on the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges rose to 105.6 yuan (16.8 billion U.S. dollars) from 102.2 billion yuan the previous trading day.
Losers outnumbered gainers by 734 to 215 in Shanghai and by 1,150 to 356 in Shenzhen.
About 70 percent of stocks saw losses on Tuesday, with liquor producers, property developers and coal-related shares leading the drops.
China Vanke Co., the nation's biggest listed property developer, edged down 0.69 percent to 8.61 yuan per share, while Poly Real Estate Group Co., the country's second-largest developer by market value, moved down 1.28 percent to 11.6 yuan per share.
Bucking the trend, shares related to shale gas exploration experienced a boost from the government's latest decision to subsidize shale gas explorers in a bid to optimize the country's energy structure.
The Ministry of Finance announced Monday in an online statement that a subsidy of 0.4 yuan (6.3 cents) will be offered for every cubic meter of shale gas developed by enterprises during the 2012-2015 period.
Boosted by the news, Datang Huyin Electric Power, Ltd surged 9.97 percent to end the day at 3.31 yuan per share, while Oriental Energy rose 3.23 percent to 11.19 yuan.
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