SHANGHAI: China's blue-chip index ended higher on Monday, underpinned by tech gains, as investors hoped for continued policy support.

       The blue-chip CSI300 index rose 0.2%, to 5,251.76, while the Shanghai Composite index was unchanged at 3,606.37

       Heavyweight financial firms fell, with the CSI300 financials index closing down 1.6%, snapping a four-day winning streak

       Helping the market, CSI new energy and CSI consumer discretionary indexes rose 1.6% and 1.2%, respectively

       Top battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd closed up 3.7% at a new high

       Tech stocks outperformed on Monday. Shenzhen's tech-heavy start-up board rose 1.9%, and Shanghai's tech-focused STAR50 index climbed 1.8%

       Beijing will not change or could even step up its support for the country's technology sector, which is the biggest good news for related stocks in the A-share market, brokerage Orient Securities said in a report

       The brokerage added that seven emerging industries, including new energy vehicles, remain the most important directions for long-term investors

       Shares in China's hog farming companies rebounded, after the state planner said the country would start buying pork for state reserves

       Data over the weekend showed profit growth at China's industrial firms slowed again in May as surging raw material prices squeezed margins and weighed on factory activity

       Profits at China's industrial firms rose 36.4% in May from a year earlier to 829.92 billion yuan ($128.58 billion), official data showed on Sunday. That was a slowdown from the 57% surge reported in April, according to National Bureau of Statistics. - Reuters