ChiNext Index Rises Over 1% as Storage Chip Concept Surges, Leading Tech Rally

On March 16, the A-share market showed a growth-led pattern, with the ChiNext Index continuing to rise in the afternoon, ultimately leading the major indices with an increase of over 1%. The growth sector became the market’s core focus, with the storage chip concept exploding across the board, driving a collective rebound in semiconductor, AI computing power, and other tech sectors. Market funds concentrated on high-growth sectors for deployment, and the market’s profit-making effect was centered on the technology mainline.

By the close, the Shanghai Composite Index was at 4,084.79 points, down 0.26%; the Shenzhen Component Index was at 14,307.58 points, up 0.19%; the ChiNext Index was at 3,357.02 points, up 1.41%; and the STAR Market Composite Index was at 1,742.01 points, up 0.65%. The combined turnover of the Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Beijing markets was 23.399 trillion yuan, shrinking by 77.4 billion yuan from the previous day, with over 2,800 stocks rising across the market.

Storage Chips Surge Significantly in the Afternoon

Yesterday, storage chip concept stocks in the A-share market collectively surged, with Beiwei Storage rising over 13%, hitting a new historical high, and stocks like GigaDevice and Golden Sun also hitting the daily limit.

Along with the explosive demand for AI computing power, storage chips entered a “super cycle.” Beiwei Storage expects to achieve a net profit attributable to parent company of 866 million yuan in 2025, a year-on-year increase of 437.56%; from January to February 2026, its operating performance continued to grow explosively, with revenue reaching 4 to 4.5 billion yuan and net profit attributable to parent of 1.5 to 1.8 billion yuan, representing year-on-year increases of 921.77% to 1086.13%.

Rongzhong Consulting predicts that the upward trend of storage chips will at least continue into the second half of 2026. Since September 2025, storage chip prices have been rising steadily, with spot prices for DDR5 memory chips increasing by over 300%. The price of a single 256GB DDR5 server memory module has surpassed 40,000 yuan. It is expected that in the first quarter of 2026, storage chip prices will increase by 40% to 50%, with a further rise of about 20% in the second quarter.

Driven by storage chips, the tech sector has warmed up, with segments such as AI computing power, semiconductor equipment, PCBs, and CPO optical modules rising simultaneously, forming a pattern of “storage chips leading the rally and tech sectors recovering,” with stocks like Sitong Electronics and Shenghong Technology also gaining.

Marine Economy Concept Rises Strongly

Yesterday, the marine economy concept surged strongly during trading, with Deepwater Hainan rising over 15%, China Ocean Shipping Group (COSCO) Shipping Development up over 10%, and stocks like Oriental Marine and Shen Kai shares hitting the daily limit.

On the news front, the 6th issue of “Qiushi” magazine published an important article titled “Promoting High-Quality Development of the Marine Economy.” The article emphasized: we should focus more on innovation-driven development, quickly break through key core technologies, and promote high-level self-reliance in marine science and technology; enhance efficient coordination, adhere to land-sea coordination and mountain-sea linkage, and strengthen collaborative development; promote industrial upgrading, transform and upgrade traditional marine industries, vigorously develop emerging marine industries, actively cultivate future marine industries, and build a modern marine industry system; foster harmony between humans and the sea, coordinate resource development and protection, and build a sustainable marine ecological environment to form a positive interaction between humans and the sea; and pursue win-win cooperation, actively participate in global marine governance, peacefully utilize marine energy resources, and resolutely safeguard China’s territorial sovereignty and maritime rights.

The Ministry of Natural Resources released the “2025 China Marine Economy Statistical Bulletin” on March 13, which shows that by 2025, the national marine gross domestic product (GDP) will reach 110.18 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 5.5%, accounting for 7.9% of GDP, up 0.1 percentage points from the previous year. From the perspective of the three industrial sectors, the added value of the primary, secondary, and tertiary marine industries accounts for 4.5%, 37.2%, and 58.3% of the marine GDP, respectively.

Institutions: Short-term Volatility Likely in A-shares

Looking ahead, most brokerage research reports believe that although conflicts in the Middle East have entered a stalemate phase, China’s stock market has been one of the markets with the smallest recent declines globally, and stability remains the underlying tone of the Chinese stock market. In the short term, the A-share market may continue to fluctuate, but as uncertainties are gradually digested and emotional shocks recede, market focus will shift back to fundamental repair and policy implementation.

Guotai Haitong Securities states that China’s market indeed cannot detach from energy price shocks but will not be dragged down by a single risk narrative. The logic of China’s market and assets also has advantages and differentiation, and stability remains the core of the Chinese stock market.

CITIC Securities believes that with overseas geopolitical conflicts entering a stalemate and crude oil prices experiencing sharp fluctuations, China’s diversified crude oil imports, energy structure transformation, and strategic petroleum reserves will serve as buffers. However, under the influence of global risk appetite fluctuations and domestic market liquidity constraints, the short-term trend of A-shares may still be volatile.

Although the market may be volatile in the short term, in the medium to long term, Guoxin Securities believes that as uncertainties are gradually digested and emotional shocks subside, the focus of the A-share market will return to domestic fundamentals and policy implementation. Coupled with the current decline in risk-free rates and ongoing deepening of capital market reforms, the A-share market is still expected to continue its upward trend in the medium to long term.