The stock market experienced a volatile session today, with indices showing mixed results in a day of range-bound trading. Although a late-session rally provided some support, it was not enough to fully lift sentiment, leaving the three major indexes to close with varied performances. The Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.28%, the Shenzhen Component Index gained 0.15%, and the ChiNext Index slipped 0.14%. Market breadth was negative, with 1,794 stocks advancing (including 49 hitting the daily limit) while 3,642 stocks declined.
Coal sector stocks strengthened collectively, with Yunmei Energy hitting its second consecutive daily limit, while Zhengzhou Coal Industry & Electric Power and Dayou Energy also surged to their daily limits. The shipping sector also rallied, with Nanjing Port, China Merchants Energy Shipping, and Haidong Development all reaching their upper price limits. Defense-related stocks showed notable activity, with Asian Star Anchor Chain and Hunan Tianyan posting strong gains. Gold stocks gained momentum in the afternoon session, with Hunan Gold and Laisheng Tongling also hitting daily limits.
On the downside, the media and short-drama concept stocks faced adjustments, as Publishing & Media and Dasheng Culture both hit their daily lower limits. In a related development, Longban Media announced on the evening of September 8 that its cumulative share price gains had deviated from fundamentals, citing risks of overheating market sentiment, irrational speculation, and potential sharp price corrections. To protect investor interests, the company's shares were suspended from trading on September 9, with trading set to resume only after the company issues a verification announcement.
Following the A-share market close, crude oil prices experienced a sudden surge, briefly breaking through the $100 per barrel threshold. Brent crude climbed past $100 per barrel for the first time since July, driven by escalating mutual attacks between the United States and Iran, which pushed the global benchmark crude price higher. The U.S. Central Command reported that American forces destroyed five Iranian oil tankers carrying crude oil in response to Iran's overnight attempt to use ballistic missiles against a U.S. Navy warship, marking the latest escalation in the ongoing conflict.
Year-to-date, Brent crude prices have risen more than 60%, and this marks the third time this year that the benchmark has exceeded $100 per barrel. Refined products such as diesel have seen even sharper price increases, as the Middle East conflict has now spread to the Red Sea region near Saudi Arabia, while the Russia-Ukraine war continues unabated. These rising energy costs could present a fresh wave of inflationary pressure for global central banks, further complicating efforts to control price levels.
A growing number of financial institutions, including Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, and HSBC, have recently raised their crude oil price forecasts. Claudio Galimberti, chief economist at Rystad Energy, noted that in the week before hostilities reignited on August 30, daily crude oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz were approximately 8-9 million barrels, which was double the figure from the previous week. However, this volume has now fallen to below 2 million barrels per day. While non-OPEC producers including the United States, Canada, and Guyana have increased their output, the International Energy Agency (IEA) indicated last month that it expects global oil supply to decline by 4.3 million barrels per day this year, representing a decrease of roughly 4%.