Chinese equities and China country-specific exchange traded funds led the advance Monday on speculation Beijing may have stepped into the markets after regulators implemented margin curbs to obviate another volatile turn.
On Monday, the Market Vectors ChinaAMC SME-ChiNext ETF (NYSEArca: CNXT) rose 7.3% and Deutsche X-trackers Harvest CSI 500 China A-Shares Small Cap Fund (NYSEArca: ASHS) gained 5.5%. The two China A-shares ETFs include a tilt toward Chinese middle-capitalization companies. CNXT is currently testing its 200-day simple moving average while ASHS is still trading just shy of its long-term trend line.
Meanwhile, the more large-cap-oriented Deutsche X-trackers Harvest CSI 300 China A-Shares ETF (NYSEArca: ASHR) and Market Vectors ChinaAMC A-Share ETF (NYSEArca: PEK) increased 4.5% and 4.6%, respectively, on Monday.
The Direxion 2x Daily CSI 300 China A Share ETF (NYSEArca: CHAU), the first leveraged A-shares ETF to list in the U.S., also surged 8.8% Monday.
Supporting the price jump, Bank of American revealed that China’s government-backed funds may have spent 1.5 trillion yuan, or $235 billion, in the third quarter to support equities, and suspected People’s Bank of China intervention helped the yuan appreciate in offshore trading, Bloomberg reports.
“There might have been some buying from state-linked funds today, particularly by the end of the day,” Gerry Alfonso, a sales trader at Shenwan Hongyuan Group Co., told Bloomberg. “Even after accounting for the hike in margin requirements, the macro picture remains relatively strong.”
Beijing also announced curbs on margin borrowing Monday as a way to obviate the excesses that led to the $5 trillion summer rout. According to the Shanghai exchange, the move will help diminish leverage and ensure “healthy development” of the market.
“While it might have a negative impact in the very short run, I think ultimately it’s a very good thing in the long run,” Brendan Ahern, managing director at Krane Fund Advisors LLC, the sponsor behind the KraneShares Bosera MSCI China A ETF (NYSEArca: KBA). It will “certainly will help de-risk, or take down, some of the inherent volatility in the market.”
Market Vectors ChinaAMC SME-ChiNext ETF
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Max Chen contributed to this article.