BEIJING, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- Chinese stocks closed higher on Wednesday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index up 0.44 percent, at 3,537.37 points.

The Shenzhen Component Index closed 0.67 percent higher at 14,711.18 points.

The combined turnover of stocks covered by the two indices stood at 1.04 trillion yuan (162.16 billion U.S. dollars), down from 1.11 trillion yuan on the previous trading day.

Shares related to rare-earth permanent magnetic materials led the gains, while those related to liquor and cloud gaming led the losses.

The ChiNext Index, tracking China's NASDAQ-style board of growth enterprises, gained 0.81 percent to close at 3,421.33 points.