On 12 October, the A-share market pulled back amid choppy trading, yet the banking sector bucked the trend to lead gains, and in early trading today (13/10) the dividend style continued to stay active against the market drift, highlighting the "ballast" quality of dividend assets.
The current low interest rate environment persists, market risk appetite has cooled somewhat, and with the October third-quarter earnings disclosure window approaching, capital's preference for earnings certainty and high-dividend assets keeps heating up, which should further reinforce the defensive value of dividend assets.
The concentrated delivery of banks' interim dividends further strengthens the appeal of dividend assets. It is understood that as of 12 October, 21 A-share banks had disclosed their 2026 interim dividend plans, with total proposed payouts exceeding 260 billion yuan, of which 15 banks raised their payout ratios versus last year.
The six major state-owned banks unanimously lifted their cash dividend payout ratio from 30% to 31%, with combined proposed payouts of more than 220 billion yuan, accounting for over 80% of the total. At the same time, listed banks' interim reports fully confirmed a recovery in fundamentals, with 32 of 42 listed banks achieving growth in both revenue and net profit, and 17 banks posting a year-on-year rebound in net interest margin. (Source: Xinhua Finance - Large-scale dividends! Banking sector strengthens again, hitting another record high - 26/10/12)
A coordinated policy package from multiple government departments has landed, improving expectations for banks' interest margins and asset quality. Recently, the Ministry of Finance, the central bank and other departments have intensively rolled out a combined policy package, whose core includes a 25bp cut in the PSL interest rate, an expansion of three relending facilities by a combined one trillion yuan, the implementation of housing purchase interest subsidies for residents, and 19 measures for financial support of the services sector.
A research report from Zhongtai Securities noted that the mortgage interest subsidy policy constitutes a triple benefit for the banking industry: the subsidy is borne by fiscal authorities, which protects banks' interest margins; the policy covers a wide range of commercial housing, which supports mortgage lending; and targeted subsidies help improve the overall asset quality of retail business. (Source: Xinhua News Agency - The People's Bank of China adjusts and improves several monetary policy tools - 26/9/29; Zhongtai Securities banking sector review report: 9.29 mortgage interest subsidy review and calculation: coverage range and subsidy scale estimates; triple benefits for banks - 26/9/30)
CSC Financial pointed out that in the first week after the holiday, the A-share index edged lower with sharp structural divergence, and in terms of style, value and dividend performed better. Incremental policies include the Ministry of Finance arranging 550 billion yuan of local government bond carryover quotas, and the China-EU trade and investment consultation mechanism forming 16 points of consensus.
October's third-quarter earnings are the core variable determining sector strength in the fourth quarter, and the recommendation is to use dividends as a base position, with policy- and sentiment-driven domestic demand/application chains and earnings-certainty directions as the offensive play, while maintaining a wait-and-see stance on high-valuation computing power hardware. (Source: CSC Financial - Growth under pressure, value and dividends continue their relative advantage - 26/10/13; Ministry of Finance Debt Management Department - 26/10/9)
The current 10-year government bond yield is only 1.67%, while high-dividend equity assets generally offer dividend yields of 4%-6%, making the spread advantage increasingly prominent. In a choppy market, the Huatai-PineBridge "Dividend Full Basket", characterized by relatively high dividends and relatively low valuations, is expected to become an important vehicle helping capital allocate to dividend assets in a low interest rate environment.
Huatai-PineBridge Fund is among China's first batch of ETF managers and has accumulated nearly 20 years of management experience in dividend-themed index investment. (Data source: Wind, as of 26/10/12; the first ETF, Dividend ETF Huatai-PineBridge, was established on 06/11/17; the risk-return characteristics of investing in government bonds and investing in stocks differ, and investors should fully consider investment risks when investing.)
Dividend ETF Huatai-PineBridge (510880) is the first dividend-themed index fund in A-shares. As of mid-2026, its number of unitholders stood at 422,900, its latest turnover reached 472 million yuan, and the latest dividend yield of its underlying index, the Dividend Index, was 3.92%.
Dividend Low Volatility ETF Huatai-PineBridge (512890) and its feeder fund had 1,483,800 unitholders, with latest turnover reaching 1.040 billion yuan, up 57% from the previous period, and the latest dividend yield of its underlying index, the Dividend Low Volatility Index, was 4.26%.
Central SOE Dividend ETF Huatai-PineBridge (561580) is the first "central SOE + dividend" dual-theme ETF in A-shares, and the latest dividend yield of its underlying index, the CSI Central SOE Dividend Index, was 3.87%.
Hong Kong Stock Connect Dividend ETF Huatai-PineBridge (513530) focuses on high-dividend Hong Kong stock assets and adopts the QDII model, giving it a certain advantage in saving Hong Kong dividend taxes; its latest turnover reached 390 million yuan, and the latest dividend yield of its underlying index, the Hong Kong Stock Connect High Dividend CNY Index, was 5.27%.
Hong Kong Stock Connect Dividend Low Volatility ETF Huatai-PineBridge (520890) focuses on high-dividend Hong Kong stock assets, and its index methodology incorporates a low volatility factor, which may make its defensive quality more prominent in the relatively volatile Hong Kong stock market; the latest dividend yield of its underlying index, the Hang Seng Stock Connect High Dividend Low Volatility Index, was 5.98%.
Dividend Quality ETF Huatai-PineBridge (561630) adopts a "dividend + quality" dual-factor stock selection strategy, which is expected to screen out high-dividend targets with solid fundamentals and better earnings, with a more prominent growth style; the latest dividend yield of its underlying index, the CSI Dividend Quality Index, was 3.80%.
Dividend Low Volatility 50 ETF Huatai-PineBridge (561450) builds on the "dividend + low volatility" dual factors while focusing more on high-quality blue chips; the latest dividend yield of its underlying index, the S&P China A-Share Large Cap Dividend Low Volatility 50 Index, was 4.19%.
MACD golden cross signals have formed, and these stocks are performing well!
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