A highly anticipated press briefing by China's top economic planner fell short of expectations.

In September, Beijing unveiled a raft of monetary stimulus packages, including forced interest rate cuts and lower down payments of homebuyers to boost the economy. Later, the southern city of Guangzhou lifted all home purchase restrictions, while both Shanghai and Shenzhen revealed plans to ease key buying curbs.

Shares soared Tuesday in Shanghai as Chinese markets reopened after a weeklong holiday but then gave up a chunk of their initial gains as officials in Beijing outlined details of plans to revive the world's second-largest economy.