Chinese mainland stocks edged higher on Monday, as the breakdown of U.S.-Iran peace talks reignited investor concerns over global oil supply, prompting them to shift toward green technology shares, according to a market analyst.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index ended up 0.06 percent to 3,988.56 points, while the Shenzhen Component Index closed 0.69 percent higher at 14,407.86 points.
The ChiNext Index, tracking China's Nasdaq-style board of growth enterprises, gained 0.8 percent to close at 3,476.44 points.
Timothy Pope, a market analyst for China Global Television Network (CGTN), recapped the market performances on the Chinese mainland.
"The collapse of those U.S.-Iran peace talks and an announcement from the U.S. that you just mentioned, that its navy is going to essentially start blockading the Strait of Hormuz, that as well sent stocks and commodities into a bit of spin today. The Shanghai Composite Index actually managed to end the session in a relatively good shape by global standards, because it was flat, not down. And the Shenzhen Component [Index] managed to gain a little bit of ground. The Chinese equity markets are still viewed as a bit more insulated from the conflict and a lot of its fallout -- not completely of course -- but more so than other global markets. And analysts say that this is going to keep them looking more attractive as long as the conflict lasts," said the analyst.
"Part of the reason for this is [that] of course, they're home to a lot of the world's top green energy and NEV stocks. And with the resumption of Middle East oil exports by sea looking like an ever more distant prospect, a lot of people are focusing on the potential for green tech to snap up some extra market share really quickly, as people look for alternatives. Battery maker CATL was the big contributor to gains in Shenzhen today. It's also got some financial results coming up this week. Oil companies were up as well. Of course, we are seeing predictions for crude prices to head back towards the region of 100 dollars a barrel again. We can also probably expect this choppy, volatile trade to continue for a while yet. But the markets here are going to have things unrelated to the war to consider this week as well. A lot of economic data is coming up, including [China's] first quarter national GDP," he said.
Chinese stocks climb as green tech draws investors amid oil supply worries
