File photo: Xinhua

BEIJING, May 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese stocks closed higher Tuesday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index up 1.23 percent, at 2,905.97.

The Shenzhen Component Index closed 1.92 percent higher at 9,087.52.

Combined trading volume of the two exchanges stood at 479.47 billion yuan (around $69.5 billion), expanding from 462.7 billion yuan the previous trading day.

Gainers outnumbered losers by 1,303 to 133 on the Shanghai bourse, and 1,836 to 269 in Shenzhen.

Companies in the industries of rare earth permanent magnets and husbandry were among the biggest gainers, with China Minmetals Rare Earth Co. Ltd. seeing its share price rise by the daily 10 percent limit to 15.91 yuan a share.

Xinjiang Tianshan Animal Husbandry Bio-engineering Co. Ltd. saw its share price rise by the daily 10 percent to 5.5 yuan a share.

Shares in the sectors of lab-grown meat and cotton led the losses.

The ChiNext Index, China's NASDAQ-style board, gained 1.66 percent to close at 1,493.72.