BEIJING, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- Chinese stocks closed lower Thursday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index down 0.57 percent, at 3,363.11 points.

The Shenzhen Component Index closed 0.71 percent lower at 13,915.57 points.

The combined turnover of stocks covered by the two indices stood at 826.1 billion yuan (about 126.31 billion US dollars), shrinking from 929.1 billion yuan on the previous trading day.

Losers outnumbered gainers by 1,143 to 319 in the Shanghai bourse and 1,860 to 430 in the Shenzhen bourse.

Stocks related to the defense, shipping, gas and water sectors led the gains, while those related to liquor and automobiles led the losses.

The ChiNext Index, tracking China's NASDAQ-style board of growth enterprises, lost 0.78 percent to close at 2,820.75 points.