Chinese stocks rebound, continuing 7-year high

A Chinese investor smiles in front of a screen displaying stock indices at a stock brokerage house in Fuyang city, East China's Anhui province, April 16, 2015. [Photo/IC]

Chinese stocks rebounded from the biggest slump in six weeks with the benchmark Shanghai index surging to a new 7-year high, amid speculations of further easing to bolster economic growth.

The Shanghai Composite Index closed at 4,194.82 points on Thursday, up 2.7 percent, while the Shenzhen Component Index advanced 2.4 percent to 13,967.8 points.

The telecommunication sector led the gains, with the country's mobile network carrier China Unicom jumping by the daily limit of 10 percent and ZTE Corp by 5.9 percent. Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) vowed on Thursday to improve the net speeds and lower mobile Internet fees, as a response to Premier's call for improved Internet access.

Distillers including Kweichow Moutai Winery Group, Wuliangye and Laobaigan climbed more than 9 percent on Thursday, as Shenwan Hongyuan Securities said in a note that Baijiu stocks are currently cheaply valued and could benefit from catalysts such as state-owned enterprise reform and innovation in business models.

Insurer stocks remained active, with Ping An Insurance and China Pacific Insurance edging over 7.4 and 4.3 percent respectively. China Life Insurance and New China Life Insurance both added 3 percent.

Nuclear-related companies also grew on Thursday, as Dongfang Electric and Shanghai Electric, together with clean energy equipment provider Zhefu Holding and Shenzhen Woer Heat-Shrinkable Material Co, surged by the daily limit.

The Chinese government on Wednesday approved the construction of pilot nuclear power units using the Hualong One technology, a domestically-developed third generation reactor design.

The CSI 300 index gained 3 percent to 4,513.55 points on Thursday.