On March 26th, China’s three major A-share indices closed lower under pressure, with market trading activity declining. By the close, the Shanghai Composite Index fell 1.09% to 3,889 points, the Shenzhen Component Index dropped 1.41%, and the ChiNext Index declined 1.34%. The total turnover of the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock markets fell below 2 trillion yuan, a decrease of 236.2 billion yuan from the previous trading day, and more than 4,400 stocks in the entire market declined, resulting in weak profit-making sentiment.
The market showed obvious differentiation. The oil and gas exploration and services sector was the biggest bright spot, with Lanyan Holdings hitting the daily limit, and many stocks such as Shouhua Gas and Qianneng Hengxin following the rise. This was mainly driven by the significant increase in international oil prices. New York crude oil closed at $94.48 per barrel, an increase of 4.61%, and Brent crude oil futures even exceeded $108 per barrel. Battery stocks also strengthened synchronously, with Haike Xinyuan rising more than 16%, supported by the three consecutive positive days of lithium carbonate futures prices and the suspension of lithium ore exports from Zimbabwe.
Among the declining sectors, the insurance sector led the decline, with China Life and New China Life falling more than 4%. This was mainly because China Life’s 2025 annual report showed a single-quarter loss of 13.7 billion yuan in the fourth quarter, far lower than market expectations. Sectors such as precious metals, wind power equipment, and photovoltaic equipment also performed weakly, affected by the vague prospect of a ceasefire in the Middle East and short-term changes in industry supply and demand.
Looking ahead to the market outlook, Zhongyuan Securities pointed out that overseas geopolitical conflicts and the direction of the Federal Reserve’s policies remain the core influencing factors. Domestic macro policies will provide a bottom-line support for the market. It is expected that the Shanghai Composite Index will maintain a volatile upward trend, and short-term opportunities can be focused on industries such as non-ferrous metals and consumer electronics.
