Stocks edge up on mainland exchanges

Pharmaceutical, cement and building material firms among top gainers

Equities closed higher on the mainland bourses on Tuesday, the first trading day after the National Day holiday, even as sentiment remained at a low ebb on most of the bourses in Europe and the United States.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose by 0.29 percent to 2913.57 points, while the Shenzhen Component Index gained 0.3 percent to 9474.75 points.