BEIJING - Chinese new stock accounts rose by 433 percent year on year in the first quarter to reach almost 8 million, Chinese securities watchdog said Friday.

About 62 percent of the new investors are in their late twenties or early thirties, the China Securities Regulatory Commission cited from the country's securities depository and clearing platform.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index increased by 2.2 percent to finish at 4,287.3 points after passing 4,300 mark at one point on Friday, another record high in over seven years, as market confidence remained high.