Chinese shares rise for 5th day

Chinese shares rose for a fifth-consecutive trading day on Monday to reach the highest level since Feb. 8, 2013, despite figures pointing to weak economic activity.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, the most important indicator of China's stock market, rose 0.41 percent to end at 2,430.03 points. The Shenzhen Component Index edged up 0.18 percent to close at 8,240.15.

Total turnover on the two bourses shrank slightly to 426.97 billion yuan (69.4 billion U.S. dollars) from 458.73 billion yuan the previous trading day.

China's manufacturing activity continued to wane in October with the purchasing manager's index (PMI) hitting a five-month low, the National Bureau of Statistics said Saturday.

The bureau announced Monday that the non-manufacturing PMI dropped to its lowest point since January.

Road and bridge construction, transportation and shipbuilding industries were among the strongest sectors on Monday, with their respective indices up by 3.69 percent, 2.26 percent and 1.88 percent.

Bucking the trend, major market heavyweights were mostly weak.

PetroChina, the country's largest oil and gas producer, slid 0.26 percent to 7.82 yuan, while China Shenhua, the number one coal miner in China, dropped 0.59 percent. The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the largest commercial bank, dropped 0.82 percent to 3.63 yuan.