Shanghai Stocks Creep Higher With Most Other Markets Closed

Shanghai stocks rebounded mildly early Thursday, with most other East Asian markets closed for Christmas, as the Shanghai Composite inched up 0.2%, briefly retaking the 3,000 level before falling back to 2,990. The index ended 0.5% lower the previous day, after having lost 3% on Tuesday. Banks led the advance, with Bank of China Ltd. up 1.1%, Agricultural Bank of China Ltd. up 0.9%, and China Minsheng Banking Corp. jumping 3.1%. Among the declines, Aluminum Corp. of China Ltd., or Chalco , fell 3.2% as aluminum prices lost ground. The moves came as the Hong Kong market was closed for the rest of the week, and with the U.S. and most European bourses also slated to shut for Thursday.