Investor are watching market formation in Beijing on Thursday Sept. 19, 2008. China stock prices soared 9.06 percent at opening on Friday after the government moved to scrap the stamp tax on stock purchase, effective Friday, in a move to boost the equities market. [Xinhua]

China stock prices rose to the daily limit in the morning session after opening 9.06 percent higher on Friday, after the government moved to scrap the stamp tax on stock purchase a day earlier in a move to boost the equities market.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index reached 2,075.08 points, up 9.45 percent or 179.24 points from the previous close around 10:30 in the morning, and stopped to rise further. The index was trimmed a bit upon closing to hit 2,075.09 points, up 9.46 percent.

The smaller Shenzhen Component Index also shot to the daily limit and closed the morning session at 7,151.45 points, up 8.97 percent or 588.38 points.

Almost all the stocks on both bourses rose to the daily limit, except those which suspended trading on Friday. The special treatment stocks, companies of which suffer losses for two consecutive years, are allowed to rise no more than 5 percent.

The market rally led to a buying enthusiasm and a surge in combined turnover on both markets, registered at 69 billion yuan (10 billion U.S. dollars) in the morning. The number is already higher than 63.1 billion yuan a day earlier.

Turnover is shrinking from a high shortly after the opening, and there are more buyers than sellers of shares, indicating investors are willing to hold stocks in anticipation of further rise the next day.

The government said late Thursday it would cancel the 0.1-percent stamp tax on purchasing shares while that on share selling remained unchanged at 0.1 percent.

The move came after domestic stocks fell for three consecutive days under the influence of U.S. financial market upheaval.

Also on Thursday, the government's investment arm -- Central Huijin Investment Co., Ltd. -- said it would buy shares of three major Chinese lenders on the secondary market to fortify their share prices.

The three lenders, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the Bank of China and the China Construction Bank, had shed heavy losses in the previous three days of trading, as banks were most hit by the spreading crisis on the Wall Street.

The surge also came after the Wall Street rallied on news of a possible government rescue plan to create an entity like the Resolution Trust Corp. to absorb banks' bad loans.

The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 410.03 points, or 3.86 percent, to 11,019.69, while the Standard & Poor's 500 Index climbed 4.33 percent and the Nasdaq Composite Index shot up 4.78 percent. It was the biggest one-day gain since October 2002 for all three indices.

Boosted by the overnight Wall Street advance, regional markets in Asia mostly opened higher on Friday.

Related : Stamp tax dropped to lift stock market

                State investment arm to back up 3 major lenders

                SOEs is supported to buy more stocks of listed arms

(Xinhua News Agency September 19, 2008)