Editorial Summary

The Shanghai Composite Index decreased 0.8 percent on Thursday to close at 4,300, while the Shenzhen Composite Index increased 0.1 percent to close at 1,356.6. Trading volume on the Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock Exchanges shrunk to RMB75.5 billion and RMB40.3 billion, respectively.

More than 20 steel firms in China have raised their product prices for March, according to China Securities Journal. Shares of Angang Steel Company Limited (000898.SZ), Wuhan Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. (600005.SH) and Baoshan Iron & Steel Co., Ltd. (600019.SH) rose 6.96 percent, 2.15 percent and 0.23 percent to close at RMB26.14, RMB20.42 and RMB17.33, respectively on Thursday.

China's Growth Enterprise Market (GEM) will launch as soon as early April, after the 2008 National People's Congress (NPC) and Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), reports Nanfang Daily.