Shanghai shares dip on economic uncertainties and rising interest rates

Shanghai stocks dipped today amid economic uncertainties and rising interest rates, analysts said.

The Shanghai Composite Index slid 0.1 percent to 3,399.25 points to mark a three-day decline, “which suggests investors still held a wait-and-see mood after data showed an industrial slowdown,” said Gu Yongtao, strategic analyst at Cinda Securities.

“Meanwhile banks’ interest rates have been increasing, dampening investment sentiment in the stock market,” he added.

The overnight Shanghai Interbank Offered Rate, or Shibor, which measures the cost at which Chinese banks lend to one another, has rebounded to a one-and-half-month high to close at 2.8 percent today .

But the drop in the index today has been smaller than the previous day, “suggesting investors should be optimistic for the long-term momentum, although uncertainty remains high,” said Li Lifeng, strategic analyst at Sinolink Securities. “Investors should be cautious to prevent risks likely to increase in the coming days.”

Bank of Shanghai Co tumbled by the daily limit of 10 percent to 15.41 yuan (US$2.33), while Jiangsu Wujiang Rural Commercial Bank Co lost 4.65 percent to 9.85 yuan.