Chinese shares extend gains

Beijing: Chinese shares extended a rally on Friday as official data showed recovery of the country's housing market in September.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose 1.3 percent to end at 3,412.43 points, Xinhua news agency reported.

The Shenzhen Component Index rose 2.64 percent to close at 11,603.46 points.

Total turnover on the Shanghai and Shenzhen bourses increased to 1.04 trillion yuan ($163.7 billion), up from 893.1 billion yuan on the previous trading day.

Real estate developers saw their value rise after the data showed that China's housing market continued to warm in September.

Beijing Vantone Real Estate Co. Ltd. and Hua Yuan Property Co. Ltd. jumped by the daily limit of 10 percent.

Of 70 large and medium-sized cities surveyed in September, new home prices climbed month on month in 39, up from 35 in August, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Friday.

Home prices in top-tier cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen, where demand is high, saw strong growth.

China's stock market gained 0.89 this week after a major correction on Wednesday, when the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index tumbled 3.06 percent.

The ChiNext Index, which tracks China's NASDAQ-style board of growth enterprises, gained 3.26 percent to close at 2,538.38 points on Friday.