A-share investors wary as data release looms

The Chinese mainland stock market may extend last week's sluggish performance Monday as investors will likely continue to tread cautiously in the run-up to the releases of March's consumer price index (CPI) and other macroeconomic data in the coming days, analysts say.

The key Shanghai Composite Index declined for a third straight day Wednesday, finishing last week's trading at 2,225.30 points, down 0.51 percent week-on-week; while the Shenzhen Component Index gained for a third consecutive day, closing at 8,964.47 points Wednesday, up 0.84 percent compared with the previous week.

In the week leading up to the Tomb-sweeping Day holiday which shut mainland markets Thursday and Friday, the Shanghai market suffered three days of mild losses to end the week at its lowest level in more than three months, accompanied by shrinking trading volume. The Shanghai Composite and the Shenzhen Component recorded a combined turnover of 137.4 billion yuan ($22.16 billion) Wednesday, down 11.98 percent compared to Tuesday.

Trading sentiment was slack throughout last week as investors displayed prudence ahead of the releases of closely-watched monthly and quarterly macroeconomic figures. The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) is due to announce its official CPI and producer price index (PPI) for March this Tuesday, with March trade data due Wednesday. In a survey of a group of economists from various financial institutions by the Securities Market Weekly, the average estimate of March's CPI growth was 2.4 percent, a drop of 0.8 of a percentage point from February.

China's GDP results for the first quarter and March data covering industrial output, retail sales and investment will be out on April 15.

With the country's economic picture still blurry, trading is likely to remain muted at mainland markets before the issuance of indicators which will help investors get a clearer grasp on fundamentals, analysts say.

Other factors that could have a negative impact on A-shares this week include: weakness in the US and European markets, local regulator's selection of 30 IPO candidates for spot-check and an increase in confirmed bird flu cases.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average Index and the Standard and Poor's 500 Index lost 0.28 percent and 0.43 percent respectively to 14,565.25 points and 1,553.28 points Friday as US non-farm payroll figures weighed down the market. Meanwhile, Britain's FTSE 100 ended Friday 1.49 percent lower at 6,249.78 points; while the German DAX index slumped 2.03 percent; and France's CAC 40 index plunged 1.68 percent.