CHINA’S stocks yesterday rallied for their best start in 22 years, as investors piled into shares of the largest companies and developers amid speculation the government will take more steps to bolster economic growth.

    PetroChina Co. surged 10 percent to lead a gauge of energy shares to the biggest advance since 2008. China Vanke Co. and Poly Real Estate Group Co. soared more than 7 percent after the government signaled it will make it easier for first-time homebuyers to borrow money to buy homes. Daqin Railway Co. advanced 5.07 percent after the government scrapped price controls on bulk cargo.

    The Shanghai Composite Index advanced 3.58 percent to close at 3,350.52, the highest level since Aug. 6, 2009. The Shenzhen Composite Index was 1.53 percent up at 1,436.86. The CSI300 index of the largest listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen rose 3.1 percent to 3,641.54.

    China is likely to further ease monetary policy, boosting industries that benefit from lower interest rates, China International Capital Corp. (CICC) said in a report yesterday.

    “The bull market is continuing with funds rotating to big developers and transport companies,” said Wei Wei, an analyst at West China Securities Co. in Shanghai. “Liquidity is still good and funds are looking for bargains in the large-cap sector.”

    The Shanghai index surged 53 percent in 2014 for the best annual performance in five years amid speculation the government will cut lenders’ reserve-requirement ratios after lowering interest rates. Recent data have been weak, with an official manufacturing gauge falling to the lowest level in 18 months in December. Industrial profits slumped by the most in two years in November, while growth in aggregate financing trailed estimates and imports unexpectedly dropped.

    The official purchasing managers’ index fell to 50.1 in December from 50.3 in November, according to data released Jan. 1 by the statistics bureau and the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing in Beijing. That compares with the median estimate of 50 in a survey of analysts.

    “Looking into 2015, we believe the monetary policy easing will likely help address the symptoms of the cyclical problems facing the Chinese economy, while full-fledged reform will likely gradually solve its structural problem,” CICC analysts led by Wang Hanfeng wrote in a report. (SD-Agencies)