BEIJING, March 16 (Xinhua) -- Chinese stocks closed mixed on Monday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index down 0.26 percent to 4,084.79 points.

The Shenzhen Component Index closed 0.19 percent higher at 14,307.58 points.

The combined turnover of these two indices totaled 2.33 trillion yuan (about 337.4 billion U.S. dollars), down from 2.4 trillion yuan on the previous trading day.

The memory chip sector led the gains, while shares in the precious metals, non-ferrous metals, rare earths, and power grid equipment sectors suffered major losses.

The ChiNext Index, tracking China's Nasdaq-style board of growth enterprises, gained 1.41 percent to close at 3,357.02 points.

The STAR Composite Index, which reflects the performance of stocks on China's sci-tech innovation board, closed 0.65 percent higher at 1,742.01 points. ■