Shanghai shares extend rally

Shanghai stocks extended their rebound today, boosted by gains in insurance and tourism shares.

The Shanghai Composite Index rose by 0.98 percent to close at 3,184.96 points.

Insurers such as China Pacific Insurance Group Co Ltd climbed 4.66 percent and Ping An Insurance Group Co of China Ltd gained 3.17 percent to 67.02 yuan.

Tourism shares also gained, with Besttone Holding Co Ltd up 6.81 percent and BTG Hotels Group Co Ltd advancing 5.45 percent. Investor confidence in the tourism sector rose after 23 of the 27 listed tourism companies which have so far released their 2017 annual reports posted positive growth.

Real estate developers such as Yunnan Metropolitan Real Estate Development Co Ltd gained over 8 percent, and Changchunjingkai Group Co Ltd surged 9.99 percent.

Among the biggest advancers today were non-bank financial shares, with Panda Financial Holding Corp Ltd and Xishui Strong Year Co Ltd Inner Mongolia both rising by over 5 percent.