Chinese shares rose 1.74 percent Wednesday as investors' confidence got a boost from April retail sales figures, which analysts said indicated that government stimulus efforts were having a positive impact.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose 1.74 percent, or 45.59 points, to close at 2,663.77. The Shenzhen Component Index edged up 1.13 percent, or 115.22 points, to 10,294.37.

Gains outnumbered losses by 514 to 315 in Shanghai and 475 to 242 in Shenzhen.

Combined turnover climbed to 222.89 billion yuan (32.63 billion U.S. dollars) from 176.3 billion yuan on Tuesday.

Retail sales rose 14.8 percent in April year on year to 934.32 billion yuan, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) announced Wednesday.

The growth rate was 0.1 percentage point higher than in March.

Industry support plans for the machinery and nonferrous metal sectors, released on Tuesday and Monday respectively, were also helping maintain economic growth, the analysts said.