Chinese shares retreated Wednesday despite Tuesday's slight rebound, with most listed companies seeing share price drops.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index was down 1.27 percent to close at 2,744.07. The Shenzhen Component Index shed 2.02 percent to close at 8,499.22.

More than 2,700 stocks fell on the two bourses, while nearly 600 stocks closed higher.

Combined turnover at the two bourses stood at 305.4 billion yuan (about 44.7 billion U.S. dollars), down from 310 billion yuan the previous trading day.

The ChiNext Index, China's NASDAQ-style board, was down 2.14 percent to close at 1,447.76.

Textile machinery firms were among the heaviest losers, with Beijing Sanlian Hope Shin-Gosen Technical Service plunging by the daily limit of 10 percent to end at 33.23 yuan.

The oil industry performed well despite the market's downward trend. Shares of Tong Oil Tools went up by the daily limit of 10 percent to close at 8.8 yuan, while China Oilfield Services gained 7.64 percent to finish at 10.14 yuan.