China’s health care, infrastructure stocks lure global bargain hunters even as coronavirus pandemic roiled equity markets in March

Foreign funds have pulled 70 billion yuan (US$9.9 billion) this month from Stock Connect amid rush for exits

Shenzhen Mindray, Wuxi AppTec benefited from fund inflows; Ping An Insurance, Midea and banks were dumped

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Foreign fund managers are pulling money out of Stock Connect programme at the fastest pace since the mainland-Hong Kong trading link was introduced in 2014. Photo: Reuters

Published: 10:15am, 29 Mar 2020Updated: 10:14pm, 29 Mar 2020

Global fund managers are putting more money on Chinese health care and infrastructure-related stocks, even as they retreated from the onshore market at the fastest rate on record amid the worsening coronavirus pandemic.

Shenzhen Mindray Bio-Medical Electronics and Wuxi AppTec were among the companies that attracted inflows this month, according to Citic Securities, China’s biggest stock brokerage. Machinery and cement manufacturers also gained favour during the sell-off that sank more than 30 global stock benchmarks into bear-market territory.

The choices show how managers are adjusting their portfolios in search of winners amid global efforts to contain the Covid-19 disease, as well as growing expectations that China will step up investments in roads, bridges and wireless networks to shore up faltering growth.

Chinese authorities are loosening the lockdown in the epicentre of Hubei province from next month, after allowing some factories and businesses to reopen in signs the crisis is abating.

“In the long turn, there will be an acceleration in building up the software and hardware in the public health system,” said Luo Jiarong, an analyst at GF Securities in Shanghai. “There’s increasing awareness among the public” after this episode, he added.