1st Ld-Writethru: Chinese shares extend losses on weak banks, Xiongan stocks

Chinese stocks fell for a second day Thursday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index down 0.46 percent to end the day at 3,090.14 points.

The smaller Shenzhen Component Index closed 0.56 percent lower at 9,974.35 points. Total turnover on the two bourses stood at 400 billion yuan (about 58.02 billion U.S. dollars).

The ChiNext Index, China's NASDAQ-style board of growth enterprises, ended 0.5 percent lower to close at 1,813.51 points.

More than 2,100 stocks fell across the two bourses, and financial shares were among the biggest losers of the day.

Four rural commercial banks, including Jiangsu Wujiang Rural Commercial Bank and Wuxi Rural Commercial Bank, slumped by the daily limit of 10 percent.

Shares related to Xiongan New Area, a new economic zone to be built near Beijing, also retreated Thursday as investors took profits following recent gains.

Five stocks, including Beijing Hengtong Innovation Luxwood Technology and Xuanhua Construction Machinery, dropped by the daily limit of 10 percent.

China announced plans last month to create Xiongan New Area, which authorities described as a "major historic and strategic choice" that would be "crucial for the millennium to come," sparking investors' enthusiasm over related stocks.

Bucking the trend, oil and gas stocks witnessed strong gains in the afternoon session after China announced that it has succeeded in collecting samples of combustible ice in the South China Sea, a major breakthrough that may lead to a global energy revolution.

China Oilfield Services Limited, a Shanghai-listed subsidiary of China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), jumped by the daily limit of 10 percent to 12 yuan, while Offshore Oil Engineering, another CNOOC subsidiary, surged 7.46 percent to 6.77 yuan. Endi