By DAVID BARBOZA
SHANGHAI — There they go again.
Fueled by renewed confidence in economic growth here, and perhaps the kind of frenzied buying that took place a few years ago, Chinese stock prices are once again soaring.
The Shanghai Composite Index rose 52 points Thursday, to close at 3,060.25, putting the index up 68 percent this year.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index fell slightly Thursday, but only after ending its best quarter in 15 years on Tuesday. That index is up about 20 percent for 2009.
Though well off their 2007 highs, Chinese stock markets are again among the world’s best performing this year.
Economists say China’s growth has begun to pick up after a sharp slowdown late last year and early this year. Sales of homes and cars are strong, and manufacturing has seen modest improvement, though worries remain about the strength of the recovery.
Still, as far as stocks go, analysts say it’s almost 2007 all over again.
“Sentiment has staged a remarkable recovery,” said Jing Ulrich, chairwoman of China equities at J.P. Morgan. “This is about confidence. The money has always been there, even in the dark days of 2008.”
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