Chinese share prices hit a record high on Thursday as the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index peaked at 4,357.8 points in the morning session.

The index seesawed afterwards and closed at 4,331.53 points, merely four points lower than the record of 4,335.96 points set on May 29.

The Shenzhen Component Index on China's smaller market rose 0.82 percent or 118.38 points to close at 14,521.46 points in the morning session.

Banks and property companies which boosted the index up in previous trading days began to fall. Nine of the twelve banks listed on the mainland stock market dropped in the morning session.

The Bank of Nanjing, the Bank of Ningbo and the Citic Bank, which rose to the daily limit of ten percent on Wednesday, continued their upward trend.

Vanke, China's largest property firm, dropped 1.65 percent to 26.8 yuan per share in the morning session.

The combined turnover on the two bourses reached 114.63 billion yuan on Thursday morning. The figure for the whole trading day on Wednesday was 196.3 billion yuan.

(Xinhua News Agency July 26 2007)