BEIJING, June 5 (Xinhua) -- Chinese shares remained weak on Thursday, but managed to partly recover losses of the coal sector on news of a freeze on power coal prices in two coal-producing provinces in the morning session.

    The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, which covers both A and B shares, ended the day down 18.27 points, or 0.54 percent, at 3,351.65 points.

    Rises in oil producers and brokers had helped lift the index out of a 1.02-percent fall in the morning session, incurred when shares of coal producers were hit hard after local governments of Shandong and Shaanxi told them not to raise prices amid a national coal shortage.

    Sinopec rose 2.52 percent to finish at 13.81 yuan, spurred by again of more than four percent on the Hong Kong exchange. PetroChina also gained mildly, up 0.63 percent on closing.

    Led by a 6.17-percent rise in Haitong Securities, shares of brokers gained. CITIC Securities was up 3.08 percent, and Hongyuan Securities rose 2.62 percent.

    However, investor confidence remained weak.

    Drops by coal producers were huge, with most reporting losses of more than six percent. Industry giant China Shenhua tumbled 6.15 percent to 42.87 yuan. Shandong-based Yanzhou Coal fell 9.26 percent, and the Shanxi-based Lu'an Environmental Energy was also down 9.2 percent.

    Analysts believed that a national price ceiling on thermal coalwas unlikely, and such price curbs in individual provinces would not have a fundamental impact on the performance of listed coal producers.

    They said losses of coal producers following the price freeze news were more a result of psychological jitters.

    Further corrections of the market would be limited in the short term, as the national economy would extend strong support to market performance, said analysts with Huiyang Investment.

    They expected some economic statistics for May, to be released soon, would be better compared than those of previous months.

    The Shenzhen Component Index fell 110.22 points, or 0.92 percent, to 11,860.27 points.

    Combined turnover further eased to 76.68 billion yuan (11.11 billion U.S. dollars) from 87.45 billion yuan a day earlier.