Shanghai stocks dip following good performance

Shanghai stocks dipped today after some good performance, as investors tend to prefer locking in profits from earlier gains.

The Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.32 percent to close at 3,091.03 points. For the week, the gauge added 0.29 percent.

Investor appetite remained weak after the Labor Day holiday, and telecoms, consumer and financial shares were among the biggest decliners today.

For those sectors who fell today, most performed well yesterday. The telecommunication sector declined 1.23 percent, and brokerage shares fell 0.89 percent, according to data from financial information provider Tonghuashun.

Market sentiment was also dimmed after Caixin's report stated that China's business activity picked up in April compared with March, but remained weaker than that seen at the beginning of the year. 

The Caixin China General Service PMI rose to 52.9 in April from 52.3 in March, according to the report conducted by financial information service provider Markit and sponsored by Caixin Media Co Ltd. In the first month of this year, the Caixin China General Service PMI was 54.7, which is much higher than that of April.

"Weaker business confidence in manufacturing offset an improvement at service companies in April, pushing overall sentiment towards the outlook for output this year to the lowest level for three months," the report said.

China National Software & Service Co Ltd tumbled 9.90 percent to 23.57 yuan (US$3.71,) Proya Cosmetics Co Ltd dropped 2.74 percent to 35.91 yuan, and Sinolink Securities Co Ltd lost 2.01 percent to 8.79 yuan.