Chinese shares close lower Thursday

BEIJING, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese stocks closed lower on Thursday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index down 0.39 percent to 3,358.73 points.

The Shenzhen Component Index closed 0.99 percent lower at 10,736.19 points.

The combined turnover of these two indices stood at about 1.61 trillion yuan (224.5 billion U.S. dollars), down from 1.68 trillion yuan on the previous trading day.

Stocks related to robotics, semiconductors and chips suffered major losses, while those in the mining and electricity sectors led the gains.

The ChiNext Index, tracking China's Nasdaq-style board of growth enterprises, lost 1.15 percent to close at 2,166 points. ■