Yesterday morning (May 1st), a spokesperson for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs officially announced that the U.S. President will pay a state visit to China from May 13th to 15th. This marks the President's second visit to China in that capacity since 2017 and the first visit by a U.S. leader in nine years, underscoring its strategic significance.
Industry insiders note that this visit represents a crucial moment for positioning the U.S.-China relationship amid a state of 'fragile stability.' U.S. demands are more specific and pressing, while China's stance is more measured and resolute. Catalytic effects are already emerging in the A-share market, with multiple investment themes—from semiconductors to rare earth permanent magnets and foreign trade sectors—beginning to gain traction. However, the real market opportunity lies in a deep understanding of the medium-to-long-term investment logic of 'navigating change and achieving industrial self-reliance.'
The core investment thesis for the rare earth permanent magnet and critical minerals sectors is underpinned by China's strategic dominance and the supply-demand dynamics. China controls over 85% of the global rare earth separation and smelting capacity and over 90% of permanent magnet material production, firmly holding global dominance in critical minerals like rare earths, lithium, and cobalt. These minerals are essential raw materials for core industries such as new energy, semiconductors, and defense, and serve as significant strategic bargaining chips in U.S.-China negotiations.
Currently, the U.S. and China are maintaining a provisional agreement on critical mineral supplies. The U.S. President's visit is highly likely to seek China's commitment to continue rare earth exports and stabilize lithium and cobalt supplies. In return, China could leverage this to secure concessions in trade, economic, and technology areas, granting the sector substantial negotiation premium potential. Furthermore, sustained growth in industries like new energy vehicles, wind power, and energy storage ensures a prolonged state of tight supply-demand balance for critical minerals, providing robust support for sector prices.
Beneficiaries are concentrated in three key areas: the entire rare earth permanent magnet industry chain, lithium mining and lithium salt companies, and 'urban mining' recycling firms. These companies possess both resource scarcity and strong strategic bargaining power. They stand to benefit from short-term catalysts related to the visit and long-term tailwinds from the high growth of the new energy industry, highlighting their investment value.
In market performance, the ChinaAMC CSI Nonferrous Metals ETF (159876), which aggregates leading companies in the nonferrous metals industry, saw its first intraday price pullback today (May 12th), dipping 0.52% after four consecutive days of gains. Taking a longer-term view, its underlying index has surged 21.25% since the rally began on March 24th, significantly outperforming major indices like the Shanghai Composite (up 10.80%) and the CSI 300 (up 12.08%).
Among constituent stocks, copper industry leaders led the gains. Jintian Copper Group surged over 8%, China Molybdenum rose more than 3%, while Western Mining and Jiangxi Copper gained over 2% each. Additionally, Xingye Silver & Tin advanced over 5%, Yunnan Chihong Zinc & Germanium rose over 4%, Jinduicheng Molybdenum increased over 3%, with Hunan Silver and Shenhuo Group also posting gains.
Data statistics period: March 24, 2026 - May 11, 2026. The annual performance of the CSI Nonferrous Metals Index over the past five full years is as follows: 2021, +35.89%; 2022, -19.22%; 2023, -10.43%; 2024, +2.96%; 2025, +91.67%. The composition of the index constituents is adjusted according to its compilation rules, and its historical back-tested performance does not indicate future results.
[The Nonferrous Metals Trend Has Arrived: An 'Unstoppable Super Cycle'] The ChinaAMC CSI Nonferrous Metals ETF (159876) and its feeder funds (Class A: 017140, Class C: 017141) track an index that comprehensively covers industries including copper, aluminum, gold, rare earths, and lithium. It spans different cyclical phases represented by precious metals (safe-haven), strategic metals (growth), and industrial metals (recovery). This full-category coverage allows for better capture of the sector's overall beta. Furthermore, this ETF is a margin trading and securities lending eligible security, making it an efficient tool for a one-click allocation to the nonferrous metals sector.
As of the end of April, the ChinaAMC CSI Nonferrous Metals ETF (159876) had a latest fund size of 1.865 billion yuan, making it the largest ETF among the three products in the market tracking the same underlying index.
Note: The previous on-market abbreviation for the ChinaAMC CSI Nonferrous Metals ETF (159876) was '有色龙头ETF' (Nonferrous Metals Leaders ETF).
Risk Disclosure: The ChinaAMC CSI Nonferrous Metals ETF passively tracks the CSI Nonferrous Metals Index. The base date for this index is December 31, 2013, and its release date is July 13, 2015. The composition of the index constituents is adjusted according to its compilation rules, and its historical back-tested performance does not indicate future results. The constituent stocks mentioned herein are for illustrative purposes only. Descriptions of individual stocks do not constitute investment advice in any form and do not represent the holdings information or trading动向 of any fund managed by the asset manager. The fund manager assesses this fund's risk rating as R3 - Medium Risk, suitable for Balanced (C3) and above investors. Suitability matching opinions should be based on the selling institution. Any information appearing in this article (including but not limited to individual stocks, commentary, forecasts, charts, indicators, theories, and any form of expression) is for reference only. Investors are responsible for any independent investment decisions. Furthermore, any views, analysis, or forecasts in this article do not constitute investment advice of any kind to the reader, and no liability is accepted for any direct or indirect losses arising from the use of this content. Fund investment carries risks. The past performance of a fund does not indicate its future results. The performance of other funds managed by the fund manager does not guarantee the performance of this fund. Fund investment should be approached with caution.
MACD Golden Cross signals have formed, and these stocks are performing well.
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