BEIJING: China’s shares ended higher Wednesday, with sharp gains in the last half-hour of trading, as officials stepped up efforts to calm markets.
The Shanghai Composite SHCOMP, +3.44% gained 3.4%, ending at 3789.16, after flitting between gains and losses earlier. The smaller Shenzhen Composite 399106, +4.13% rose 4.1% to 2198.81.
The gains—which ranged across sectors—follow three days of selling that knocked 11% from China’s main stock index. Shanghai remains down more than a quarter from its June high.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index HSI, +0.47% ended up 0.5% while a gauge of Chinese companies listed in the city rose 0.9%.
About 400 stocks listed in Shanghai and Shenzhen reached their 10% upward daily limit on Wednesday, while industrial stocks like CRRC Corp., China Railway Group and China Shipbuilding Industry Co. led gains for the Shanghai Composite.
The rapid gains late in the afternoon baffled many analysts, some of whom suspect the government may have stepped in to buy more shares.
“Clearly it is government intervention again,” said Jacky Zhang, an analyst at BOC International.
