Chinese stocks rose by the most in more than a week on Monday amid expectations of stimulus measures from Beijing to offset the impact of the trade war with the US.
The CSI 300 Index, a gauge of the nation’s biggest companies, added 0.4 per cent to 3,787.84 at 9.50am local time, the most since April 11, while the Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.5 per cent. Hong Kong’s stock market is closed for the Easter holiday and will reopen on Tuesday.
The gains were led by tech firms. Artificial intelligence chip designer Cambricon Technologies jumped 5.9 per cent to 709.01 yuan, while high-end processor maker for servers and computers Hygon Information Technology advanced 2.7 per cent to 153.62 yuan. Electric vehicle battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology rose 1.9 per cent to 229.66 yuan.
Limiting gains, Chinese baijiu maker Luzhou Laojiao fell 1 per cent to 130.40 yuan, while property developer China Vanke eased 1.6 per cent to 7.18 yuan.
Traders are betting on bolder stimulus in the coming months to help mitigate risks amid intensifying trade tensions between China and the US, according to global investment banks. While UBS, Goldman Sachs, Nomura and others have cut their forecasts for China’s economy, they expect more stimulus measures from Chinese policymakers to underpin the economy.
“We expect the government to accelerate bond issuance and the spending of proceeds in the coming months,” Andrew Tilton, an economist with Goldman Sachs, said in a note over the weekend.
