Tuesday’s slides cannot be ignored, but at the same time, nor can the strength displayed by A-shares ETFs this year. Confirming that strength is this factoid: ASHR, the largest U.S.-listed China A-shares ETF is up 33.4% this year, but that is not good enough to place the fund among the 10 best-performing ETFs. [What’s Driving A-Shares ETFs]
A-shares ETFs have surged in almost straight line fashion since the start of March, prompting elevated valuations that are well above Hong Kong-listed stocks.
“While the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index soared 17 percent in April, the most since October 2011, A shares in China are still trading at a 31 percent premium to stocks in Hong Kong,” according to Bloomberg.
The Shanghai Composite “remains inside of a steep rising channel and this week is breaking a steep support line. Humbly, I remain of the opinion its important to keep a close eye on leadership. If the Shanghai index cools off, it could impact numerous global markets,” according to Kimble.
For traders looking to play a Shanghai Composite retrenchment, there is not yet an inverse A-shares ETF, though Direxion has such a fund in the works.
Bearish China ETFs currently available include the Direxion Daily FTSE China Bear 3X Shares (NYSEArca: YANG) and the ProShares UltraShort FTSE China 50 (NYSEArca: FXP). Those ETFs are the triple- and double-leveraged inverse answers to the iShares China Large-Cap ETF (NYSEArca: FXI).