Pollution spike boosts shares

The recent surge in air-pollution levels in more than 30 cities around China may boost demand for environmental and air-filtering products and spur the performances of the companies in those industries, analysts and investors said.

The healthcare sub-index of China's A-share market gained 2.8 percent on Monday as consumers are increasingly looking at products to protect themselves against rising levels of PM2.5 - particles in the air smaller than 2.5 microns and able to enter the lungs - especially in North China.

A-shares are specialized shares bought and traded on the Shenzhen and Shanghai stock exchanges.