Saudi, Singapore wealth funds snap up Alibaba, JD.com, BeiGene and other Chinese stocks, picking up where US funds left off

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund increased its stake in Alibaba by 41 per cent and held on to its shares in Pinduoduo and BeiGene, 13F filing shows
Singapore’s Temasek upped its stake in JD.com by 110 per cent and maintained its position in five Chinese stocks including Alibaba and Yum China

China stock market

Jiaxing Li

Published: 1:33pm, 15 Aug 2023

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Two of the world’s biggest sovereign wealth funds held on to their Chinese equity investments in the second quarter, bucking a broad divestment trend among global investors amid growing pessimism.

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) bulked up its stake in Alibaba Group Holding by 41 per cent to 1.45 million shares, the biggest adjustment to its US$35.5 billion equity portfolio last quarter, according to its latest 13F filing on Saturday with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Its holding in two other Chinese American depositary receipts, Pinduoduo and BeiGene, was unchanged from the previous quarter.

Singapore’s Temasek Holdings boosted its holdings in JD.com by 110 per cent and in BeiGene by 1 per cent, while cashing out most of its stake in Pinduoduo. It maintained its position in five other Chinese companies including Alibaba and Yum China Holdings, according to its 13F filing.

The two sovereign funds’ bullish bets on Chinese stocks were in stark contrast to the bearish mood among global investors, who have been slashing their exposure amid an underwhelming market and rising geopolitical risks.

Temasek Holdings remained upbeat on Chinese equities in the year’s second quarter. Photo: Reuters

Scion Asset Management, founded by Michael Burry of “The Big Short” fame, exited its stakes in Alibaba and JD.com last quarter, just months after doubling its bets on these two stocks. Tiger Global, meanwhile, slashed its position in JD.com by 12 per cent. Bridgewater Associates, the world’s biggest hedge fund with US$123 billion in assets under management, liquidated nearly a third of its holdings in Chinese stocks including Futu Holdings and Zhihu.

The divergence in global investors’ bets came as the “China reopening” play turned sour in the second quarter amid a sluggish post-Covid-19 recovery. The MSCI China Index, which tracks over 700 companies traded at home and abroad, slumped 5.6 per cent in the three months ended June, wiping out US$180 billion in market value.

Some of the biggest Wall Street banks also differ on the direction of China’s market and Beijing’s reaction. Goldman Sachs and Bank of America expect a rally ahead as Beijing’s likely policy easing could help turn the corner. Morgan Stanley, however, downgraded the MSCI China Index as it believes policy support might fall short of expectations.

Beijing’s tepid stimulus measures and the recent property crisis have worsened the outlook. Many fund managers say they struggle to see an upside, and a reversal is unlikely any time soon.

The Saudi and Singapore sovereign funds recorded steep losses last year amid a global market downturn. The PIF incurred a loss of US$11 billion on investment activities last year, versus a US$19 billion gain in 2021. Temasek lost US$5.2 billion in the 12 months to March 2023, its worst showing since 2016.

“We need to apply a geopolitical lens to all our investments,” Rohit Sipahimalani, chief investment officer at Temasek said last month.

“For example, we won’t invest in areas that are in the cross hairs of US-China tensions. We’ll prefer to invest in companies that have access to large domestic markets.”