China stocks fall for 5th consecutive day

Chinese stocks fell for a fifth consecutive trading day on Wednesday, with the cement industry leading the decline.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index went down 1.49 percent, or 33.33 points, to finish at 2,204.17. The Shenzhen Component Index lost 1.69 percent, or 144.37 points, to finish at 8,409.80.

Combined turnover on the two bourses shrank to 190.42 billion yuan (31.17 billion U.S. dollars) from 198.85 billion yuan the previous trading day.

The sub-index for the cement industry fell 3.13 percent. Tangshan Jidong Cement Co., Ltd. slumped 8.51 percent to end at 9.25 yuan per share. Anhui Conch Cement Co., Ltd. lost 4.25 percent to 17.57 yuan.

The farming industry posted gains, on the other hand. Gansu Dunhuang Seed Co., Ltd. went up 4.92 percent to close at 7.67 yuan. Hunan Jinjian Cereals Industry Co., Ltd. surged 6.35 percent to 5.19 yuan.

The ChiNext Index, tracking China's Nasdaq-style board of growth enterprises, rallied 1.02 percent on Wednesday.