Stock Market

Strong industrial metal producers pushed Chinas main stock index up on Wednesday, but the market ended well off the days high after short-term speculators took profits in the final 45 minutes of trade. The Shanghai Composite Index, which gained 3.02 percent on Tuesday, ended Wednesday up 0.24 percent at a three-week closing high of 2,223.725 points, off a high of 2,255.009.