Hong Kong and China Stocks Surge, 'JungHakGaeMi' Investors Step Up Buying

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] As stock prices in Hong Kong and China rise, domestic investors are stepping up their purchases.

According to the Korea Securities Depository on the 23rd, domestic investors have net purchased a total of $78.76 million (approximately 97.3 billion KRW) in the Hong Kong and China stock markets from the beginning of this month to the 19th.

Domestic investors had net sold $85.51 million (approximately 105.8 billion KRW) in November last year and $149.73 million (approximately 185.2 billion KRW) in December in these markets. For the entire last year, they net sold $227.81 million (approximately 281.8 billion KRW).

The shift to net buying by investors is interpreted as being due to the rise in Hong Kong and China stock prices following China's reopening at the start of the new year.

The stock markets in China and Hong Kong had declined due to global market downturns, the spread of COVID-19, and the impact of Chinese President Xi Jinping's third term, but have attracted attention since the end of last year as a full-scale shift in quarantine policies began. Additionally, expectations have grown that the Chinese government will launch a full-scale economic stimulus this year.

Domestic investors mainly purchased big tech stocks such as Global X China Biotech ETF (net purchase of $8.82 million), Tencent ($6.31 million), and Alibaba ($5.82 million) in the Hong Kong stock market in the new year. In the China stock market, they net purchased reopening beneficiaries such as Guizhou Moutai ($15.8 million), Hansoh Pharmaceutical ($7.41 million), and electric vehicle battery maker CATL ($4.05 million).