Traders work at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, the United States, Aug. 2, 2019. Photo: Xinhua

Chinese mainland stocks flexed their muscles on Monday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index touching 3,100 points in intraday trading before edging down 0.01 percent, or 0.38 points, to finish at 3,083.41 points. The Shenzhen Component Index and the ChiNext index both ended in positive territory, a conspicuous sign of the strength of mainland stocks despite uncertainty arising from US-Iran conflict.

A surge in Tesla-related stocks on the mainland market could be a silver lining to dark clouds shrouding the US market. Still, a spike in gold and oil exploration and production stocks hints at a shift toward a risk-off investment setting. 

The US' sizzling stock market has taken a hit from the nation's geopolitical tensions with Iran, with all three of its major indices correcting on Friday.

China has urged the US not to abuse its military power and called on all parties to remain restrained and avoid escalating the situation so as to get back on the track of dialogue and negotiation, and is pushing for the de-escalation of tensions, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang told a regular press briefing on Monday, reiterating that China would continue to hold an objective and equitable stance and to play a constructive role in maintaining a peaceful and safe Middle East.

It could well be the case that China would turn out to be a stabilizer of the global equity market roiled by the US' killing of a top Iranian general.