Stocks end four-day run of losses

Chinese mainland stocks opened low Tuesday, but eventually finished higher than Monday's close, ending a four-day run of losses.

The Shanghai Composite Index reached an intraday high of 2,006.23 in the morning, only to pull back in afternoon trading to end at 1,990.06. The gain for the day was 13.76 points, or 0.70 percent. The Shenzhen Component Index advanced 61.64 points, or 0.80 percent, to 7,730.17.

The combined turnover of the two exchanges was 157.66 billion yuan ($22.70 billion).

Reuters quoted traders as saying that the People's Bank of China (PBC) injected 17 billion yuan into the market by issuing seven-day reverse repurchase agreements, the first time the PBC engaged in open market operation since June 20.

In addition, Xiao Gang, chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, said Monday that the policymaker is to increase the proportion of direct financing to protect individual investors.

Financial stocks rose on the news, with Ping An Bank Co gaining 4 percent. The property sector also had a good day, with China Merchants Property Development Co Ltd and China Vanke Co swelling 4 percent and 3 percent respectively.

Rare earth commodity prices have risen by 30 percent since July 25, driven by the news that authorities will crack down on the black market. This pushed up stock prices in companies related to the sector. Shenghe Resources Holding Co Ltd soared 9.9 percent, China Minmetals Rare Earth Co Ltd added 4.01 percent, and Xiamen Tungsten Co Ltd gained 3.20 percent.