Markets close lower as financial shares weaken

Stock markets on the Chinese mainland ended a choppy day with losses Wednesday as financial stocks plunged again ahead of the advancing holiday.

The Shanghai Composite Index shed 9.02 points, or 0.41 percent, to end at 2,198.51; while the Shenzhen Component Index gave up 51.09 points, or 0.59 percent, to close at 8,613.71.

Emerging equities also suffered: the small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) board index lost 1.25 percent to finish at 5,223.76, while the ChiNext index gave up 0.40 percent to reach 1,323.04.

Combined trading volume reached 273.83 billion yuan ($44.74 billion), steady with Tuesday's 273.6 billion yuan.

With the National Day holidays just round the corner, hotel and retail shares rose by averages of 3.67 percent and 1.19 percent respectively. Eight individual retail stocks, including sector giants Beijing Hualian Hypermarket Co, Beijing Wangfujing Department Store (Group) Co and Chongqing Department Store Co all hit the 10-percent daily limit.

Stocks exposed to the Shanghai free trade zone tacked on an average of 2.45 percent as authorities set September 29 as the inaugural date for the project. Shanghai Lujiazui Finance & Trade Zone Development Co, Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone Development Co and Shanghai Oriental Pearl (Group) Co Ltd each hit the 10-percent limit.

Components within the appliance manufacturing sector picked up an average of 2.63 percent after Gree Electric Appliances Inc confirmed plans to venture into the nascent private banking industry. The company's stock surged 8.78 percent.

Brokerage and banking stocks dipped 0.61 and 0.58 percent respectively. Shanghai AJ Corporation led the charge downward after dropping 5.77 percent to 13.89 yuan.