Temasek’s China investments continue to suffer while new bets on chip makers TSMC, Nvidia unrewarded

Holdings in about 10 Chinese companies suffered US$532 million erosion in value during the first quarter, according to its 13F filing on late Monday

Temasek made new purchases in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company and Nvidia; raised stake in Sea Ltd while stock slumped

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Researchers work inside a laboratory at BeiGene’s research and development center in Beijing. Temasek has increased its holdings in the biotech company. Photo: Bloomberg

Published: 9:53am, 17 May 2022Updated: 3:02pm, 17 May 2022

Temasek Holdings continued to suffer from its steadfast view on China’s outlook last quarter as Covid-19 lockdowns inflicted losses on its stock holdings from Alibaba Group Holding to Didi Global. New bets on Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company and Nvidia also flopped.

It incurred at least US$532 million of erosion in the value of American depositary shares in 10 Chinese companies during the first three months of the year, according to its 13F report late Monday. Overall, the value of its portfolio declined by about US$4 billion from the end of 2021.

The Singapore state investment firm maintained its stake in Alibaba and bought additional shares in ride-hailing group Didi Global, biotech firm BeiGene, and e-commerce operator Pinduoduo, the regulatory filing showed. The three stocks tumbled by 21 per cent to 50 per cent in New York during the quarter, according to Bloomberg data.

Chief Investment Officer Rohit Sipahimalani. Photo: Handout

The struggle underscores the crisis caused by China’s hardline zero-Covid strategy, which has led to a full lockdown in Shanghai and 40 other municipalities and provinces responsible for about 30 per cent of national output.

Investors are worried that the market has become “uninvestable” amid factory shutdowns, supply-chain disruptions and delisting risks. An aggressive US policy tightening has also fanned a stock sell-off this year.

“[China] is one of the fastest-growing large economies,” Temasek’s chief investment officer Rohit Sipahimalani said in a Bloomberg TV interview on May 4. “You cannot not be invested in China. There is a clear intention from the government to revive growth.”

Temasek declined to comment on an email request from the Post.