Today (January 21), major A-share indices closed collectively higher, with the STAR Market showing strong upward momentum, leading the gains as the STAR 50 Index surged over 3%. The combined turnover for the Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Beijing markets was 2.62 trillion yuan, a decrease of 180.4 billion yuan from the previous day.
In market sectors, semiconductors saw significant gains, with the electronics sector attracting a net inflow of 39.254 billion yuan in main funds throughout the day, ranking first among the 31 primary Shenwan industries in terms of fund attraction. Hygon Information Technology, Tongfu Microelectronics, and Sugon claimed the top three spots for individual stock fund attraction. The Electronics ETF (515260), which has a 46% weighting in Apple's supply chain, saw its price surge 3.13% in a reversal pattern. In precious metals, gold prices broke through $4800 per ounce for the first time, and the A-share nonferrous metals sector led the gains, with Western Region Gold and four other stocks hitting the daily limit-up. The popular sector ETF—Huabao Nonferrous Metals ETF (159876)—soared 3%, continuing to set a new historical high!
Regarding the AI twin stars, the narrative for AI remains robust both domestically and internationally, with the high prosperity of computing hardware expected to persist. The Huabao STAR Market Artificial Intelligence ETF (589520), which focuses on the domestic AI industry chain, saw its price jump 2.69%, attracting 150 million yuan over the past 10 days. Industry consensus suggests CPO is an inevitable choice rather than an optional technology, with 800G and 1.6T optical modules expected to see rapid volume growth by 2026. The Huabao ChiNext Artificial Intelligence ETF (159363), heavily weighted in optical modules, closed up 1.25%, after receiving a net inflow of 1.839 billion yuan in the preceding 10 days.
According to Guojin Securities, AI and "anti-involution" may become the main themes for A-shares in 2026. Since the beginning of 2026, the AI-driven market trend has been extending from upstream computing infrastructure to downstream AI applications, while geopolitical conflicts are catalyzing the nonferrous metals and defense sectors. China's PPI recorded its highest month-on-month increase since 2024 in December 2025. From a driver perspective, AI's contribution to PPI improvement is mainly reflected in price increases for nonferrous metals and technology components. The underlying drivers of PPI improvement reflect two main themes for A-share market pricing in 2026: one is AI, and the other is "anti-involution." Based on current market performance, "anti-involution" has not yet been fully priced in.
Regarding the current market, J.P. Morgan believes the upward trend in A-shares and Hong Kong stocks could extend to the Lunar New Year, as the market is not showing signs of overheating. With investors continuing to favor growth stocks during rotation, supported by corporate earnings and positioning factors, the upward momentum in A-shares and Hong Kong stocks is expected to continue until the Lunar New Year. Hong Kong stocks are anticipated to outperform A-shares during this rally. Earnings expectation revisions are gradually appearing, and from the perspectives of valuation, growth, and liquidity, the market does not show signs of overheating.
In Hong Kong markets, all three major indices closed in positive territory. The Hong Kong Information Technology ETF (159131), the first market-wide ETF focusing on the "Hong Kong chip" industry chain, and the Huabao Hong Kong Stock Connect Healthcare ETF (159137), which aggregates leading medical companies, saw their prices rise 1.26% and 1.06%, respectively. The Hong Kong Internet ETF (513770), focused on core Hong Kong-listed AI assets, attracted nearly 1 billion yuan over the past 10 days!
[ETF Hot Topics Review] focuses on discussing the trading and fundamental aspects of industry-themed ETFs such as Nonferrous Metals, ChiNext Artificial Intelligence, Hong Kong Stock Connect Healthcare, and A-share Healthcare.
First, [Yet Another Record High! Huabao Nonferrous Metals ETF (159876) Surges 3% to a New High! Western Region Gold and Four Other Stocks Hit Limit-Up! Sudden News of a 150-Ton Gold Purchase Order from Overseas!] Strength begets strength! The Huabao Nonferrous Metals ETF (159876), which encompasses leading companies in the nonferrous metals industry, surged powerfully, with its price rising 3.01% to set another historical high! The full-day turnover was 106 million yuan, a 14% increase from the previous day.
An ETF breaking through its listing high on increased volume can be a buy signal! Data shows that Huabao Nonferrous Metals ETF (159876) received a net subscription of 18.6 million units for the day, and it has also seen continuous inflows over the past 10 days, totaling a massive 635 million yuan!
Regarding constituent stocks, sixty percent of the stocks rose over 2%, with Silvercorp Metals, Guocheng Mining, Western Region Gold, Hunan Silver, and Shenzhen Chiwan Rising Nonferrous Co. hitting the daily limit-up. Chifeng Jilong Gold Mining, Sinomine Resource Group, and Xiamen Tungsten rose over 9%. Among heavyweight stocks, Shandong Gold climbed over 6%, while Zijin Mining Group rose more than 2%.
On the news front, there was sudden overseas news of a large 150-ton gold purchase order. On January 20 local time, the National Bank of Poland announced it had approved a plan to purchase up to 150 tons of gold, a move that would increase Poland's total gold reserves to 700 tons. In a statement, the bank said this would place Poland among the top ten countries globally in terms of gold reserves. Combined with the impact of overseas geopolitical factors, international gold prices continued to soar, with spot gold breaking above $4800 per ounce to set a new record high. Domestic gold jewelry prices also surpassed 1500 yuan per gram.
Dongwu Futures analysis suggests that precious metals are fluctuating upwards due to, on one hand, the US announcing tariff increases on European countries, which has reignited risk aversion sentiment and benefited precious metals. Secondly, the criminal investigation into Powell essentially represents another challenge to the Federal Reserve's independence, further undermining confidence in the US dollar. Everbright Futures pointed out that against the backdrop of a potential pause in Fed rate cuts in January, geopolitics have become the short-term focus, and gold's popularity is unlikely to decline in the near term due to risk aversion.
On the policy front, Shanghai has issued a document to promote the upgrading of the nonferrous metals bulk commodity sector. On January 20, Shanghai released the "Action Plan for Strengthening Futures-Spot Linkage to Enhance the Capability Grade of Nonferrous Metals Bulk Commodities," aiming to enhance synergistic development between markets, jointly improve Shanghai's resource allocation capacity and global pricing influence in nonferrous metals bulk commodities, and support Shanghai's "Five Centers" construction.
China International Capital Corporation (CICC) notes that nonferrous metals are a macro-driven sector, where the macroeconomic perspective is as important as supply-demand balance sheets. Under the基调 of global monetary and fiscal easing, the macroeconomic environment in 2026 may be generally warmer than in 2025. China Galaxy Securities believes that intensified global geopolitical conflicts may trigger a reshaping of the global metals supply chain, catalyzing demand and value revaluation for critical strategic metal mineral resources. The logic supporting price increases for key strategic nonferrous metals like copper, tungsten, molybdenum, cobalt, and rare earth magnetic materials is expected to continue.
[The Nonferrous Metals Trend is Here, the "Super Cycle" is Unstoppable] The target index tracked by Huabao Nonferrous Metals ETF (159876) and its feeder funds (Class A: 017140, Class C: 017141) comprehensively covers industries such as copper, aluminum, gold, rare earths, and lithium, encompassing different景气 cycles like precious metals (safe-haven), strategic metals (growth), and industrial metals (recovery). This full-category coverage allows for better capture of the entire sector's beta行情.
Second, [Last-Minute Buying Rush! Optical Module/CPO Stocks Rally, ChiNext Artificial Intelligence ETF (159363) Rebounds Over 1%, Funds Shift to Net Inflow of 82 Million Units!] The ChiNext Artificial Intelligence sector rebounded over 1%, with strength in the computing hardware direction, while AI applications continued to correct. In computing power, optical module/CPO概念 stocks continued to rise, with ZS Technology hitting the 20% limit-up, Lantech rising over 12%, and T&S Communications, Guangku Technology, and Eoptolink gaining over 3%. In AI applications, Yeahmobi and Hualuoke led declines, falling over 8%.
Among popular ETFs, the ChiNext Artificial Intelligence ETF (159363), which has a dual focus on "Computing Power + AI Applications," saw its price rebound over 1%, with daily turnover exceeding 700 million yuan. Notably, funds engaged in heavy last-minute buying, reversing the daily net flow to positive, with a net subscription of 82 million units for the day! Prior to this, funds had already aggressively increased holdings by over 1.8 billion yuan in the last 10 days.
Earnings expectations for overseas computing power chain segments like optical modules/CPO remain a core线索 for fund trading.
Tianfeng Securities stated that as the market enters the earnings预告 disclosure period, they firmly看好 the investment opportunities in core标的 within the computing power industry chain. AI is expected to drive strong business growth for core suppliers in the computing power supply chain, and attention should be paid to key manufacturers in the chain. Among these, the high景气度 in the overseas computing power industry chain persists, with related company financial reports continuously reflecting strong demand related to AI. The fundamental共振 within this related产业链 is stronger, and they持续看好 investment opportunities in the overseas computing power产业链, such as optical modules.
Industrial Securities pointed out that since last November, upstream computing hardware (communications, semiconductors, etc.), which enjoys high景气度, is one of the tech sectors with较多 upward revisions to profit forecasts, indicating potential positive fundamental support. On the other hand, from a market performance perspective, the communications industry is also one of the AI hardware sectors with relatively low涨幅 since the start of the year's行情. This combination of "upward earnings revisions" and "low涨幅" suggests that this sector may attract inflows from fundamentally-focused funds during the earnings disclosure period.
Regarding AI applications, the AI application板块 has become a main theme since the beginning of 2026. CITIC Securities research reports believe that there will still be many catalysts for AI applications ahead, and the trend of accelerated AI application落地 is expected to continue. CES 2026, held at the beginning of the year, provided an important window for observing the future direction of AI application落地. Overall, China possesses advantages in application落地 pace and user scale, and AI applications still have significant room for growth.
As current AI development moves from computing power construction to application落地, the ChiNext Artificial Intelligence ETF (159363) and its off-exchange feeders (Class A 023407, Class C 023408), which provide one-click exposure to "Computing Power + AI Applications," benefit more directly from the growth红利 of AI technology commercialization. From a sector perspective, the ChiNext Artificial Intelligence index allocates approximately 60% to computing power (primarily optical modules) and about 40% to AI applications, making it not only a core "computing power" play but also a true representative of "AI applications."
Third, [New Medical Insurance Policy Introduced, Surgical Robot Leader Soars 17%! Huabao Hong Kong Stock Connect Healthcare ETF (159137) Hits High of 1.78%, Ending Four-Day Losing Streak; Healthcare ETF Attracts Massive Inflows] Following the release of a new policy by the National Healthcare Security Administration (NHSA), A-H share medical device stocks rose accordingly! The largest A-share Healthcare ETF (512170) intraday high reached 1.36%, frequently trading at a premium throughout the day, indicating relatively strong buying interest. Over 270 million yuan entered the market提前 yesterday.
Hong Kong healthcare stocks showed higher elasticity. The Huabao Hong Kong Stock Connect Healthcare ETF (159137), which aggregates leading medical companies, hit an intraday high of 1.78%, closing up 1.06% to end a four-day losing streak. Among constituents, domestic surgical robot leader MicroPort MedBot -B surged 17.3%, followed by MicroPort Scientific and X-Japan rising over 5%. Heavyweight stock AliHealth gained 3%.
On January 20, the NHSA officially issued the "Guidelines for the Establishment of Price Items for Surgical and Treatment-Assisted Operation Medical Services (Trial)," establishing unified pricing frameworks for innovative medical technologies such as robotic surgery and remote surgical assistance. This aims to lead medical technology upgrades through pricing and guide the transition from "traditional treatment" to "precision medicine."
Industry insiders pointed out that these guidelines首次 establish a "compliant, quantifiable, and chargeable" market mechanism for high-end surgical assistance technologies, which is expected to significantly enhance industry innovation motivation and corporate profit certainty, particularly benefiting companies in high-end medical equipment, robotic surgery, remote healthcare, and compliant consumables.
CITIC Securities stated that with the introduction of the new medical insurance policy, the medical device sector faces an industry-wide investment opportunity. Under the unified charging framework, the cost-performance advantages of domestic surgical robots and supporting consumables will become more prominent, potentially accelerating import substitution. Simultaneously, the NHSA has clarified that the guidelines will be continuously expanded in the future, reserving space for more innovative medical device products, which benefits the overall innovation ecosystem of the industry.
It is worth noting that the healthcare sector is currently迎来 multiple positive factors. Medical devices may benefit from the aforementioned new medical insurance policy, while前沿 directions like brain-computer interface and AI healthcare also face continuous catalysts. The CXO industry is experiencing improving景气度, driven by both the recovery of overseas orders and domestic capacity rationalization.
To efficiently capture opportunities from the medical industry's innovation and upgrade, consider the high-elasticity T+0 "tool"—the Huabao Hong Kong Stock Connect Healthcare ETF (159137). Its target index (the Hong Kong Stock Connect Healthcare Theme Index) anchors medical innovation and aggregates core leaders across various healthcare fields in Hong Kong, including "Medical Devices + AI Healthcare + CXO + Innovative Drugs."
For A-share healthcare investment tools, focus on the largest healthcare ETF by size (512170) and its off-exchange feeder funds (012323). It concentrates on the two major fields of medical devices and medical services. Its target index, the CSI Healthcare Index, includes 12 AI healthcare/brain-computer interface concept stocks, with a combined weighting exceeding 36%.
Note: As of January 20, 2026, the Healthcare ETF fund size is 26 billion yuan, making it the largest among all医药医疗类 ETFs in the market (1/73).
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