SHANGHAI: Investors snapped up shares of Chinese drugmakers, mask producers, antigen test companies and funeral service providers on Monday (Dec 12), amid fears of soaring mass infections following China’s pivot away from strict zero-COVID policies last week.
Medical supplies producers are being bombarded with questions from investors about their capacity, after authorities on Wednesday announced a dramatic loosening in COVID-19 testing, quarantine and management rules in the aftermath of anti-lockdown protests.
China’s healthcare index gained almost one per cent on Monday morning, despite a 0.8 per cent drop in the benchmark CSI300 Index.
More than a score of drug-making stocks surged, after China’s National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine published a long list of recommended medicine, including cough and flu drugs, that people could use to cope with infections at home.
Shijiazhuang Yiling Pharmaceutical, seller of a highly popular medicine for colds, traded near record highs, having jumped 70 per cent since the end of October. Jinghua Pharmaceutical Group surged the maximum 10 per cent.
Investors are also piling into mask makers, such as Shandong Dawn Polymer, and antigen testing firms, such as Wuhan Easy Diagnosis Biomedicine, amid reports of rapidly rising infections in major cities, including Beijing and Chengdu.
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