Analyst highlights mixed performances in Chinese stock market on Monday

During the final trading week of the year, a bullish global equities mood bolstered investor sentiment, leading to divergent performances among major Chinese indices, said Wang Yin, a market analyst.

Chinese stocks closed mixed on Monday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index up 0.04 percent to 3,965.28 points.

The Shenzhen Component Index closed 0.49 percent lower at 13,537.1 points.

The combined turnover of these two indices totaled 2.14 trillion yuan (about 304.28 billion U.S. dollars), down from 2.16 trillion yuan on the previous trading day.

The ChiNext Index, tracking China's Nasdaq-style board of growth enterprises, lost 0.66 percent to close at 3,222.61 points Monday.

"A bullish global equities mood lifted sentiment in the final trading week of the year, the Shanghai Composite index rose slightly today, marking its ninth straight winning session, but the Shenzhen Component index closed 0.5 percent down, and the CSI 300 index fell 0.38 percent. Among local firms with a market cap of at least 150 billion onshore Chinese yuan, Cambricon Technologies was the biggest leader, adding 4.2 percent and Shanghai Pudong Development Bank and China Petroleum and Chemical Corp gained 3.8 percent and 3.6 percent each, rounding out the top three movers today. China's Ministry of Finance said that the 2026 Focus will be on strengthening the domestic market through higher consumer demand and targeted investment in public services. As favorable policy signals strengthen and the Renminbi continues to appreciate, stock markets are gaining upward momentum," she said.

Stocks related to artificial intelligence and info tech led the gains, while the power and chemical sectors posted notable declines, Wang explained.

"Notable gains on Monday came from the AI-related sectors, and the info tech sector gained 0.44 percent. Shares of humanoid robot concepts outperformed, with Swancor Advanced Materials and Kinco Automation Shanghai hitting their record highs in the afternoon trade. And shares of commercial aerospace concept continued its uptrend to lead the gains today. Meanwhile, weighing on the markets, the new energy vehicle index and the new energy sector dropped 1.85 percent and 1.67 percent each, as the head of China's passenger car association said that demand for Chinese lithium batteries will likely slump in early 2026 due to an expected tumble in domestic EV sales and slowing battery exports," she continued.

Analyst highlights mixed performances in Chinese stock market on Monday

China's two major power grid operators -- the State Grid Corporation of China (State Grid) and China Southern Power Grid (CSG) -- reported a surge in investment in the first quarter of 2026, underscoring efforts to strengthen infrastructure construction and support high-quality socioeconomic development in China.

The State Grid said it completed fixed-asset investment worth 129 billion yuan (about 18.77 billion U.S. dollars) in the first three months of this year, up 37 percent the corresponding period of the previous year. The spending has driven more than 250 billion yuan (36 billion U.S. dollars) of investment across the wider industrial chain.

Key projects such as the Panxi ultra-high-voltage (UHV) alternating current (AC) line and the Anhui-Hubei back-to-back direct current (DC) project have seen ground broken for their construction, while several west-to-east power transmission projects have been upgraded.

Investment in connecting renewable energy generation to the grid was reported to have exceeded 10 billion yuan (1.45 billion U.S. dollars) from January to March, a year-on-year rise of more than 50 percent.

The CSG also reported robust growth in investment in the three-month period, with fixed-asset investment reaching 38.45 billion yuan (5.58 billion U.S. dollars), up about 50 percent from a year earlier.

Among its achievements, the company completed and commissioned 80 key projects, including the 220 kV cross-sea power grid interconnection project, which was officially put into operation on March 20. The project ended years of grid isolation on the Weizhou Island in south China by linking it to the main power system of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

The construction of 17 other major energy projects, including one linking the power grid of the Xizang Autonomous Region in southwest China with that of Guangdong Province in south China, is advancing rapidly. These projects are expected to bolster regional industries, the maritime economy, digital collaboration and the transition to green energy.

"By accelerating major project construction, investment during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030) is expected to approach 1 trillion yuan (145 billion U.S. dollars), driving a further 2 trillion yuan (290 billion U.S. dollars) of investment across upstream and downstream industries," said Dong Yanle, deputy general manager of the Engineering Construction Department under the China Southern Power Grid.

China ramps up power grid investment in January-March to boost growth