By Summer Zhen
HONG KONG, April 11 (Reuters) –China shares rose on Thursday as strong performances in copper and gold miners offset the drag from weak consumer data, while Hong Kong stocks tracked overnight losses in Wall Street.
** At the midday break, the Shanghai Composite index .SSEC was up 0.4% at 3,038.58 points.
** China released worse-than-expected March consumer data on Thursday, maintaining pressure on policymakers to launch more stimulus as demand remains weak.
** Yet a rally in global commodities has lifted the CSI Coal Index .CSI000820 and the A-share Resources Index .CSI000805 by 2% and 1.7%, respectively.
** Hong Kong stocks snapped a three-day winning streak as U.S. sticky inflation numbers diminished rate-cut hopes and dragged down U.S. shares overnight.
** China’s blue-chip CSI300 index .CSI300 was flat, with its financial sector sub-index .CSI300FS losing 0.23%, the consumer staples sector .CSI000912 down 0.86%, the real estate index .CSI000952 dropped nearly 1% and the healthcare sub-index .CSI300HC slipped 1.04%.
** Chinese H-shares listed in Hong Kong .HSCE fell 0.7% to 5,974.63, while the Hang Seng Index .HSI was down 0.76% at 17,009.49.
** The smaller Shenzhen index .SZSC was up 0.3%, the start-up board ChiNext Composite index .CNT was weaker by 0.37% and Shanghai’s tech-focused STAR50 index .STAR50 was up 0.61%.
** Around the region, MSCI’s Asia ex-Japan stock index .MIAPJ0000PUS was weaker by 0.53% while Japan’s Nikkei index .N225 was down 0.54%.
** The yuan CNY=CFXS was quoted at 7.2361 per U.S. dollar, 0.02% weaker than the previous close of 7.2345.
** The largest percentage gainers in the main Shanghai Composite index were Xiamen XGMA Machinery Co Ltd 600815.SS, up 10.12%, followed by Shaanxi Construction Machinery Co Ltd 600984.SS, gaining 10.06% and Xinjiang Baodi Mining Co Ltd 601121.SS, up by 10.05%.
** The largest percentage losses in the Shanghai index were Sanxiang Advanced Materials Co Ltd 603663.SS, down 10.018%, followed by Dali Pharmaceutical Co Ltd 603963.SS, losing 9.974% and SEC Electric Machinery Co Ltd 603988.SS, down by 9.974%.
** In Hong Kong, the sub-index of the Hang Seng index tracking energy shares .HSCIE rose 1.3%, while the IT sector .HSCIIT fell 0.6%.
Reporting by Summer Zhen; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips
