Bank shares drag CSI index lower
SHANGHAI - Most stocks on the Chinese mainland fell, with the benchmark index erasing gains, as banks slid after lower-than-estimated inflation failed to ease concerns of more tightening. Commodity producers rose after metal and oil prices climbed.
Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd (ICBC), the world's largest lender by market value, declined 0.69 percent on Tuesday. Consumer prices rose 4.9 percent last month from a year earlier, as prices excluding food surged the most in at least six years. Jiangxi Copper Co climbed to a one-month high after copper rallied to a record while Huaxin Cement Co jumped to a three-year high after China International Capital Corp said prices of the building material will increase.
About 10 stocks fell for every seven that rose on the Shanghai Composite Index, which added less than 0.01 percent to 2899.24 at the 3 pm close on Tuesday. The CSI 300 Index lost 0.05 percent to 3217.67.