Chinese shares soar

China's stocks closed higher on Wednesday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index surging 4.31 percent to close at 3,459.64 points.

The smaller Shenzhen index gained 5.29 percent to close at 11,884.9 points, Xinhua reported.

The ChiNext Index, which tracks China's NASDAQ-style board of growth enterprises, jumped 6.38 percent to close at 2,584.32 points.