Chinese shares rally on investor confidence

Investors are seen at a trading hall of a securities firm in Shanghai, east China's municipality, Aug. 12, 2013. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index jumped 2.39 percent to end at 2101.28. The Shenzhen Component Index rose 2.59 percent to 8356.73. (Xinhua/Ding Ding)

Chinese shares rallied on Monday as positive economic data released on Friday rekindled market confidence.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index climbed 2.39 percent, or 49.05 points, to end at 2,101.28, and the Shenzhen Component Index surged 2.59 percent, or 210.77 points, to finish at 8,356.73.

The combined turnover of the Shanghai and Shenzhen bourses grew to 243.11 billion yuan (39.42 billion U.S. dollars) from 191.6 billion yuan the previous trading day.

China's new bank loans and money supply for July came in higher than expected, pushing up investors' confidence.

The country's new yuan-denominated loans in July stood at 699.9 billion yuan, 159.8 billion yuan more than a year ago, according to data released by the People's Bank of China (PBOC). or the central bank, on Friday.

M2, a broad measure of money supply that covers cash in circulation and all deposits, increased 14.5 percent year on year to 105.24 trillion yuan at the end of July, a growth rate that was 0.5 percentage points higher from June, the PBOC said.

The coal industry led Monday's rises, with the sub-index surging 8.10 percent. The share prices of Yanzhou Coal Mining Co., Ltd. and Yunnan Coal & Energy Co., Ltd. both jumped by the daily cap of 10 percent.

The financial sector also impressed, with the sub-index rising 3.74 percent. The Industrial Bank Co., Ltd. climbed 6.24 percent to end at 9.88 yuan. Southwest Securities Co., Ltd. gained 7.56 percent to 9.53 yuan.

The ChiNext Index, tracking China's Nasdaq-style board of growth enterprises, dipped 0.91 percent on Monday to close at 1,161.87 points.