B&R Forum gives Chinese, Asian markets a shot in the arm

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The stock market in China advanced on Monday, the only trading day which coincides with the two-day Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation that started on Sunday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index edging up 0.22 percent to close at 3,090.23 and the smaller Shenzhen Component Index up 0.59 percent to end the trading session at 9,845.6.

Leading sectors on Monday included cyber security, quantum communication, and intelligent wearables, rising 3.01 percent, 2.58 percent, and 2.23 percent respectively.

Screenshot of Shanghai Composite Index /Reuters Photo

Over the weekend, “WannaCry" ransomware affected thousands of systems around the world, including in China. Over 10 cyber security stocks hiked to the daily trading limit of 10 percent.

Shares of stocks belonging to industries in connection to the Belt and Road Initiative inched up 0.26 percent on average on Monday. The three-day average of the group was up 2.28 percent in total. Leading stocks included that of materials company Beijing Hengtong Innovation Luxwood Technology Co., Ltd. and silk products company ZheJiang Jiaxin Silk Corp., Ltd.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang provided reassurance about China's capability to ward off regional and systemic financial risks, during his meeting with Christine Lagarde, Managing Editor of the International Monetary Fund, on the sidelines of the Belt and Road forum on Sunday.

Li said China will put the prevention of financial risks at a prominent position.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang met with Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund in Beijing, on May 14, 2017. /Xinhua Photo

Lagarde noted China's growth momentum is encouraging.

Meanwhile, in Hong Kong SAR, the Hang Seng Index closed 0.86 percent higher to 25,371.59 on Monday – the highest since July 2015.

Screenshot of Hang Seng Index /Reuters Photo

Tokyo's Nikkei 225 stocks closed 0.07 percent lower, while South Korea's KOSPI closed 0.2 percent higher. India's Sensex also gained 0.44 percent to close at 30322.12.

China also released its economic data for April on Monday. Industrial output rose 6.5 percent year-on-year, retail sales were up 10.7 percent on annual basis, while fixed-asset investment expanded 6.9 percent in the first four months of the year, indicating a "stable" economic outlook, according to Xing Zhihong, spokesperson for China's National Bureau of Statistics.

Li Daxiao, Chief Economist of Yingda Securities, said that the Belt and Road Initiative is not just a concept on stock markets, but a pragmatic strategy through which investors could reap benefits.