Chinese stocks closed higher on Wednesday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index up 0.08 percent to 4,116.94 points.
The Shenzhen Component Index closed 0.7 percent higher at 14,255.13 points.
The combined turnover of these two indices totaled 2.6 trillion yuan (about 371.35 billion U.S. dollars), down from 2.78 trillion yuan on the previous trading day.
Stocks related to non-ferrous metals, furniture and textile machinery led the gains, while shares in the liquor and electricity sectors suffered major losses.
The ChiNext Index, tracking China's Nasdaq-style board of growth enterprises, gained 0.53 percent to close at 3,295.52 points on Wednesday.
The STAR Composite Index, which reflects the performance of stocks on China's sci-tech innovation board, closed 2.32 percent higher at 1,862.69 points on Wednesday.
Chinese shares close higher Wednesday
Chinese shares close higher Wednesday
The death toll from a shopping mall fire in Pakistan's southern port city of Karachi climbed to 60 after at least 30 bodies were recovered from a shop of the multi-story building, officials said on Wednesday.
The bodies were recovered from the mezzanine floor of the shopping mall, said senior police official Syed Asad Raza, adding that several people are still missing and a search operation is continuing to recover them.
He said that the rescue efforts are being carried out using sophisticated machines, and debris is being removed from the collapsed sections of the building.
The official said that the rescue workers are facing difficulties reaching some parts of the building due to smoke and heat inside the damaged structure, adding that one part of the building is cleared and the other two parts are being combed to rescue people under the rubble.
Karachi Commissioner Syed Hassan Naqvi said that an investigation into the incident has been launched as authorities look into the fire from multiple angles.
Death toll from shopping mall fire in Pakistan's Karachi rises to 60
