A-share Market Close | Shanghai Composite Falls 0.81%, Breaks Below 4,100 Point; Computing Power Leasing Concept Stumbles; Is Growth Style Exiting the Stage?

Global markets came under pressure after oil prices surged past $100. Concerns over energy supply sparked by the Iran conflict continued to ferment, with inflation fears spreading to stocks, bonds, and forex markets.

On March 13, the three major indices rose and fell throughout the day before closing lower collectively, with energy stocks soaring and tech stocks retreating. By the close, the Shanghai Composite fell 0.81%, the Shenzhen Component dropped 0.65%, and the ChiNext Index declined 0.22%. The combined trading volume of Shanghai and Shenzhen was 2.4 trillion yuan, down 41.6 billion from the previous trading day.

Huaxi Securities stated that by 2026, the main investment theme may shift from technology to a price-increase chain. Key areas to watch include: first, imported inflation, with energy sectors (oil and gas, coal chemical industry, upstream raw materials, shipping) likely to see confirmed price increases driven by geopolitical tensions; second, endogenous inflation, focusing on the recovery of traditional industries driven by “anti-involution” efforts, including chemicals, steel, coal, building materials, and hog farming; third, tech-related price increases, especially in the AI computing industry upstream.

Market highlights include continued strength in chemical concepts such as fertilizers, urea, methanol, and phosphate chemicals, with multiple stocks like JinNiu Chemical and LuHua Technology hitting daily limit-ups; lithium resources and lithium battery materials like lithium iron phosphate remained strong, with Wanli Shares and Putailai hitting limits; wind power stocks surged again, with TianShun Wind and Dajin Heavy Industry hitting limits; nuclear power stocks showed localized activity, with China Nuclear Construction hitting the daily limit; sectors like medical aesthetics, hotels, liquor, and real estate rebounded, with Aomei Medical and JingTou Development hitting limits; coal and steel concepts showed strength, with companies like Shougang Hongxing and Zhengzhou Coal & Electric hitting limits; home appliance stocks like AokeMa and Nichi Sunrise also rose sharply; banking, high-yield, and state-owned enterprise sectors performed strongly.

On the downside, lobster concept stocks, cloud services, and computing power leasing stocks suffered heavy declines, with Meili Cloud hitting the limit-down, and UCloud, HanDe Information falling more than 9%. Small metals, gold, and silver concepts continued downward, with stocks like Zhongtung High-tech, Zhangyuan Tungsten, and Jiang Tung Equipment hitting limits. Stablecoin concepts experienced a one-day rally and then retreated. Gas turbines, transformers, and power grid equipment stocks like Zeyu Intelligent and Pino Technology fell over 10%. Satellite internet, commercial space, and space computing concepts continued to decline, with Aerospace Electric dropping over 8%. Optical fiber, optical modules, and PCB hardware concepts like Guangxun Technology hit the limit-down. Multimodal, AI intelligent agents, and AI application concepts continued their downward trend. Military industry stocks such as military informatization, military electronics, and aircraft engines remained weak. Humanoid robots, consumer electronics, photovoltaics, and semiconductors all declined across the board.

Hot sectors:

1. Lithium battery materials defy the trend

Lithium resources and lithium iron phosphate concepts remained strong all day, with Wanli Shares and Putailai hitting the daily limit.

Commentary: According to Guojin Securities, lithium battery production in March rebounded significantly, with month-on-month growth of 11%–22% and year-on-year growth of 37%–56%. By March 2026, pre-production plans for batteries, cathodes, anodes, separators, and electrolytes are expected to increase by 36%–57%, with electrolytes and separators growing over 50% year-on-year.

2. Chemical sector remains strong

The chemical sector continued its strength, with Sanfangxiang and LuHua Technology hitting two consecutive daily limit-ups, and stocks like Jinzengda, Hongbaoli, and Chitianhua also hitting limits.

Commentary: Geopolitical conflicts in the Middle East have disrupted global supplies of ammonia, urea, sulfur, and phosphates. Additionally, about 20% of global LNG supply has been affected, heavily impacting European and other regional fertilizer producers reliant on natural gas. Since the US and Israel began bombing Iran, European benchmark natural gas prices have risen approximately 60%.

3. Wind power stocks repeatedly active

Wind power stocks surged again, with Dajin Heavy Industry hitting two consecutive limit-ups, Tongyu Heavy Industry reaching a 20% limit, and TianShun Wind hitting the limit.

Commentary: The government’s work report this year proposed large-scale infrastructure projects like super-large intelligent computing clusters and computing power collaboration. Additionally, the “Data Center Green and Low-Carbon Development Special Action Plan” requires new data centers at national hubs to source over 80% of their electricity from green energy.

4. Computing power leasing stocks retreat

Lobster concept stocks, cloud services, and computing power leasing stocks suffered heavy declines, with Meili Cloud hitting the limit-down, and UCloud, HanDe Information falling more than 9%.

Institutional views:

CICC: Long-term Middle East conflict may cause global financial market turbulence

The Middle East conflict is a typical supply shock, directly impacting crude oil supply and prices. For the US, already facing supply constraints, slow inflation decline, and rising government debt, escalating Middle East tensions increase the risk of stagflation. If the conflict persists briefly, impacts may be moderate. However, prolonged escalation could heighten macroeconomic pressures in the US, intensify financial market turmoil, and significantly affect the global economy and markets.

CITIC Securities: 2026 will be a key year for the turning point in consumer industry prosperity

CITIC Securities reports that the current consumer market is at a critical window of weak recovery and policy expectations. Based on marginal macroeconomic improvements and high-frequency microdata, 2026 is expected to be the year when the consumer industry’s prosperity turns. Due to the still-weak macro environment, the recovery of consumer confidence will take time. Short-term opportunities include policies related to fiscal stimulus, with a focus on high-dividend assets and resilient growth sectors like services, catering, dairy, and others. Long-term allocation should emphasize changes in consumption structure.

Galaxy Securities: If Middle East conflict becomes prolonged, asset pricing logic may change

Galaxy Securities believes that traditional valuation models regard US Treasuries, the US dollar, and core US stocks as “safe assets.” However, if the conflict persists, rising energy costs, weakening US fiscal constraints, and damaged strategic credit could alter this framework. Gold, energy assets, non-dollar currencies, and markets with resilient supply chains and geopolitical stability, such as China, may gain new premiums.

Huaxi Securities: Continue tracking inflation chains; three key directions to watch

By 2026, the main investment theme may shift from technology to a price-increase chain. Key areas include: first, imported inflation, with energy sectors (oil and gas, coal chemical industry, upstream raw materials, shipping) likely to see confirmed price increases driven by geopolitical tensions; second, endogenous inflation, focusing on recovery in traditional industries driven by “anti-involution” efforts, including chemicals, steel, coal, building materials, and hog farming; third, tech-related price increases, especially in AI computing upstream industries like computing infrastructure (servers, chips), storage chips, optical communication, PCB materials (fiber optics, glass fiber), and power energy.

Reprinted from “Tencent Stock Select,” with editing by Zhitong Finance: Li Fo.