BEIJING: China stocks climbed to fresh seven-year highs on Friday, and looked set for their biggest weekly gain in two months, as investors plough a record amount of borrowed money into the stock market.
The CSI300 index was up 1.6 percent to 4,916.16 points at 0221 GMT, while the Shanghai Composite Index gained 1.7 percent to 4,605.42 points.
But Shenzhen’s start-up board ChiNext, which repeatedly smashed record highs this week, reversed gains and swung into negative territory.
Most sectors advanced, with financial stocks taking the lead with a 2.7 percent gain.
“It seems that investors are afraid of missing the rally and continue coming in,” Gerry Alfonso, director of Shenwan Hongyuan Securities in Shanghai, wrote in a morning note.
The outstanding amount of margin financing, or the money investors borrow to buy stocks, hit another record on Tuesday, rising to 1.98 trillion yuan ($319.60 billion), accounting for around 4 percent of China’s total market capitalisation.
