-- Chinese equities rallied as sentiment was uplifted over its first-quarter gross domestic product, which performed better than expected, along with other economic data that showed positive outcomes during the period.
The Shanghai Composite Index, the main gauge of Chinese stocks, added 0.7%, or 28.34 points, to close Thursday's trade at 4,055.55. The Shenzhen Component Index jumped 2.1%, or 297.88 points, to 14,796.34.
China's GDP in the first quarter rose 5%, landing within the year's target range of between 4.5% and 5%, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed.
The industrial output and retail sales also performed well in March, climbing 5.7% and 1.7%, respectively. However, retail sales missed market expectations of a 2.4% growth.
Meanwhile, prices of new residential properties in China's top-tier cities in March rose 0.2% month on month.
Wuhu Atech Automotive (SHA:603293) surged 112% at the close of its trading debut on the Shanghai Stock Exchange. Shares closed at 71.02 yuan apiece, more than double than the initial public offering price of 33.49 yuan per share.
In corporate news, JHT Design (SHA:603061) soared 7% after its first-quarter attributable profit surged 222% year on year to 82.5 million yuan.
BlueFocus Intelligent Communications Group (SHE:300058) jumped 4.7% after returning to profit in 2025, posting an attributable profit of 224.7 million yuan, or 0.063 yuan per share.