China markets tumble, led downward by semiconductor shares

China stocks stumbled on Tuesday, with all major indexes going into moderate retreat.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index slipped 0.28 percent to 3,106.82 points, the smaller Shenzhen Component Index fell 0.47 percent to 11,988.77 points and the ChiNext Composite Index shed 0.65 percent to 1,922.56 points.

Turnover on the Shanghai bourse, however, advanced to 271.54 billion yuan (US$39.47 billion) from Monday's 258.52 billion yuan.

Bucking the general downturn, environmental-friendly engineering companies were among the biggest gainers with an overall increase of 2.37 percent. Stocks surging by the 10 percent daily cap included Lingnan Eco&Culture-Tourism Co, Qiao Yin Environmental Protection and Poten Environment.

Cobalt and lithium battery-related shares performed strongly as well. Companies including GEM Co, Miracle Automation and Guangdong Dowstone Technology Co jumped by the daily limit.

Elsewhere, insurance firms showed their strength, closing Tuesday's trading with an average gain of 0.63 percent. Ping An Insurance added 0.44 percent to 86.83 yuan, while PICC Property and Casualty Co rose 0.52 percent to 7.72 yuan.

Semiconductor shares plunged the most, finishing with an overall drop of 1.28 percent, after leading the gains on Monday. Securities companies surrendered 1.18 percent, retreating from the sector's advance of 1.49 percent on Monday.