China stocks mixed; refiners down

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.5 percent to close at 2,846.12. The Shenzhen Composite Index rose 0.2 percent to close at 854.83.

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., also known as Sinopec, Asia's biggest refiner by volume, shed 2.1 percent. That followed a report by China's petroleum industry association that losses at Chinese refiners would rise sharply in the first half of the year due to government controls that limit their ability to pass on rising crude costs to consumers.

China's biggest oil producer, PetroChina Ltd., fell 1.2 percent. Air China Ltd., China's biggest airline, fell 2.7 percent. China Eastern Airlines Corp. dropped 1.8 percent.

Over the previous several sessions on the New York Mercantile Exchange, August crude oil futures have retreated more than 10 percent from a record above US$147 hit on July 11. But after dipping below US$129, prices have started to rebound and were trading near US$131 a barrel Tuesday in electronic trading.

Other industries saw mixed results. China's biggest real estate developer, China Vanke Ltd., fell 1.45 percent, while rival Poly Real Estate Group rose 1.63 percent. Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd., the country's biggest commercial lender, fell 0.79 percent while No. 2 Bank of China Ltd. rose 0.25 percent.

China Life Insurance Co. fell 2.2 percent. Ping An Insurance Co. climbed 0.2 percent.

In currency markets, China's yuan rose slightly to 6.8257 to the U.S. dollar.