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By Bloomberg

China stocks climbed for the first time in four days amid low turnover after authorities stepped up measures to stabilize the market.

The Shanghai Composite Index rose 1.8 percent to 3,688.69 at 1:02 p.m. after changing direction about seven times. Industrial companies led gains. China Southern Airlines Co. and China Eastern Airlines Corp. gained more than 5 percent as oil prices held near a six-month low.

Investors who borrow shares must now wait one day to pay back loans, according to statements from the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges issued after the close of trading on Monday. The short-selling curbs are the government’s latest measures to prop up share prices and prevent market manipulation after an almost $4 trillion selloff. Trading volume was 47 percent lower than the 30-day average for the time of day.

“If volumes cannot increase, the rebound could be over any time,” said Wei Wei, an analyst at Huaxi Securities Co. in Shanghai. “The market is still in the process of seeking a bottom, which may take some time.”

The latest market-soothing measures prevent investors from selling and buying back stocks on the same day, a practice that may “increase abnormal fluctuations in stock prices and affect market stability,” the Shenzhen exchange said.

Regulators are probing “malicious” short-selling and have examined the futures trading accounts of foreign investors. They’ve also banned stock sales by major shareholders, suspended initial public offerings and compelled state-run institutions to support the market with equity purchases.

Brokerages Drop

Brokerages fell in Hong Kong after Citic Securities Co. and Huatai Securities Co. said they’ve suspended short-selling. Citic Securities retreated 1 percent and Haitong Securities slid 1.4 percent.

All 10 industry groups rose on the CSI 300 Index, which advanced 1.5 percent. The measure’s August futures jumped 4.5 percent to 3,777.40, still trading at a discount of about 100 points to the index. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng China Enterprises Index of mainland companies gained 0.1 percent, while the Hang Seng Index lost 0.2 percent.

The Shanghai Composite has tumbled 29 percent since this year’s peak on June 12 amid concern economic growth is faltering, while a flood of market-support moves have so far failed to revive interest in equities as traders cut leveraged bets.

Margin Debt

China Southern climbed 5.5 percent, while China Eastern added 6.1 percent. Air China Ltd. rose 3.7 percent. Oil in London traded below $50 a barrel amid speculation Iranian supplies will exacerbate a global surplus as demand from the U.S. to China slows. Brent futures dropped 5.2 percent on Monday to below $50 for the first time since January.

Kweichow Moutai Co. led an advance among liquor makers, climbing 1.2 percent after China Business News reported that the biggest two producers raised key product prices.

Margin traders reduced holdings of shares purchased with borrowed money for a seventh day on Monday, with the outstanding balance of margin debt on the Shanghai Stock Exchange falling to a five-month low of 832.5 billion yuan ($134.1 billion).

A total of 520 mainland Chinese companies were halted from trading on Tuesday morning, or 18 percent of all listings, up from 517 at the close of the previous day, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

The median stock on mainland bourses trades at 61 times reported earnings, higher than in any of the world’s 10 largest markets, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That compares with a multiple of 12 in Hong Kong.