Stocks skyrocket in post-holiday trading

China shares jumped after an extended national holiday break, with investors taking reassurance from positive economic data and indications of a rebound in tourism and consumption over the week-long holiday.

At close, the Shanghai Composite Index was up 1.68 percent at 3,272.08. The Shenzhen Component Index surged 2.96 percent to 13,289.26 points. The ChiNext Composite Index soared 3.81 percent to 2,672.93 points. China’s bluechip CSI300 index was up 2.04 percent.

Turnover on the two major bourses rose to 711.2 billion (US$105.59 billion) from 540 billion yuan in the previous session.

Most shares posted gains, with gainers outnumbering losers by 1,649 to 112 on the Shanghai bourse and 2,192 to 113 in Shenzhen.

The rising market was supported by signs of a firming economic recovery in China. An industry survey showed China’s service sector activity extended into a fifth straight month in September, with hiring increasing for the second month in a row.

The just-ended holiday also indicated stronger recovery momentum than in previous holidays, such as Labor Day and the Dragon Boat Festival.

Analysts expect strong market performance in October. Essence Securities said in a note: “the extended holiday indicates the huge potential in consumption. And besides that, European stock markets bottomed out during the National Day holiday, which will have little negative effect on Chinese markets.”