China’s ChiNext Index up 3.5% to highest level since 2015 as semiconductor rally broadens
Tech-heavy index breaches the 3,900-point mark amid strong signals from Beijing that it is committed to chip self-sufficiency
China’s tech-heavy ChiNext Index rose about 3.5 per cent to its highest level in nearly 11 years, breaching the 3,900-point mark, as a broadening semiconductor rally, Beijing’s push for technological self-sufficiency and easing US-China trade tensions lifted investor appetite for growth stocks.
The gauge climbed to 3,928.97 on Monday, the strongest level since it closed at 3,899.71 on June 12, 2015.
This came as Hong Kong chip stocks extended their rally on Monday morning, riding a global semiconductor wave after Wall Street’s Philadelphia Semiconductor Index surged last week, and continued momentum in China’s home-grown AI chip sector kept sentiment buoyant.
Suzhou Novosense Microelectronics led the pack with a 15.47 per cent jump to HK$196.3. Montage Technology increased 11.45 per cent to HK$418.6. Fortior Technology (Shenzhen) gained 10.37 per cent to HK$166. Meanwhile, GigaDevice Semiconductor Inc rose 7.96 per cent to HK$529, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp added 4.43 per cent and Hua Hong Semiconductor climbed 2.45 per cent.
Gains in the sector outpaced the overall market trend as the benchmark Hang Seng Index eked out 0.05 per cent to 26,406.84, while the Hang Seng Tech Index edged up 0.07 per cent to 5,106.40.
The rally drew fuel from a strong signal that Beijing is committed to domestic chip self-sufficiency. State television footage broadcast Friday showed Vice-Premier Ding Xuexiang visiting Huawei Technologies’ chip research and development centre in Shanghai, where he held talks with the company’s founder and CEO Ren Zhengfei.