ETF Selection | The three major indices opened lower and then rose, with ETFs in sectors such as innovative pharmaceuticals, rare metals, semiconductors, and others performing remarkably well

Ask AI · Why can AI computing power bring about the trillion-dollar semiconductor era early?

On March 27, 2026, the market moved within a full-day range, lifting across the board. All three major indices closed higher.

By the close, the Shanghai Composite rose 0.63%, the Shenzhen Component rose 1.13%, and the ChiNext Index rose 0.71%.

In terms of themes, sectors such as energy metals, chemical pharmaceuticals, and healthcare services led the gains, while sectors such as insurance, banks, and aerospace equipment saw the biggest declines. In terms of main fund flows, concepts in nonferrous metals, energy metals, and batteries were among the top net inflows.

As for ETFs, possibly stirred by related news, ETFs related to innovative drugs, rare metals, and semiconductors delivered standout performance!

【Multiple pharmaceutical companies have reached a turning point in profitability; institutions: the fundamental logic for the innovative drug industry is solid】

On the news front, multiple pharmaceutical companies have reached a turning point in profitability. In its 2025 annual report, Hengrui Medicine showed that revenue from innovative drugs grew 26% year over year; the segment’s share is already close to 60%, and BD-authorized revenue contributed more than CNY 3 billion. Inovation and cloud-based innovators such as Innovent Biologics, Yunding New Fortune, and Autolus? actually “Cloud”? Wait—text: 诺亚诚健华、云顶新耀、晶泰控股2025年均实现同比扭亏为盈，验证行业已从“烧钱研发”进入“盈利兑现”新阶段。
Tianfeng Securities stated that the fundamental logic for the innovative drug industry is solid; the policy environment is favorable and the value of substitution is increasingly prominent. It suggests focusing on leading pharmaceutical companies that have blockbuster products and can successfully go overseas, as well as upstream industry-chain companies that have cost advantages. If related individual stocks correct sufficiently, they will present high-odds opportunities.

Related ETFs: Cx Innovation Drug ETF E Fund (589120), Cx Innovation Drug ETF Guotai (589720), HK Innovation Drug ETF Bosera (520690), HK Connect Innovation Drug ETF Southern (159297), HK Connect Innovation Drug ETF E Fund (159570)

【Institutions: With rare metal base driving in emerging areas, there is potential to maintain a tight equilibrium】

On the news front, as rare-earth magnet materials are core strategic-industry materials for the country, they play a key role in promoting the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries and the development of future emerging industries. Currently, the escalation of geopolitical conflicts has led to macro pressure; nonferrous metals overall are under pressure, but structural opportunities in smaller metal sub-sectors have become more prominent.

CITIC Securities stated that the escalation of geopolitical conflicts has raised risk-aversion sentiment, and metal prices face short-term pressure. However, in the long run, the logic of bullish nonferrous resources remains unchanged. Among them, tantalum is firmly bullish because its share in military procurement is high, supply is fragile, and there is a long-term mismatch between supply and demand. As for rare earths, although the price of praseodymium-neodymium oxide has fallen rapidly in the short term, the overall supply-demand tight pattern has not changed. In 2026, driven by emerging fields such as new-energy vehicles and robots, it is expected to maintain a tight equilibrium, and the praseodymium-neodymium price has an upside foundation.

Related ETFs: Rare Metals ETF Harvest (562800), Rare Metals ETF Huafu (561800), Rare Metals ETF 广发 (159608), Rare Metals ETF ICBC (159671)

【Under AI computing-power-driven momentum, the trillion-dollar semiconductor era is expected to be realized in 2026】

On the news front, on March 25, SEMICON China 2026 International Semiconductor Exhibition officially opened in Shanghai. At the conference, the president of SEMI China said that driven by AI computing power, the global semiconductor industry has reached a historic moment. The trillion-dollar “chip era,” originally expected to arrive only in 2030, is likely to come as early as the end of 2026.

Guosheng Securities stated that in 2026, global semiconductor equipment sales are expected to reach USD 145 billion. With dual driving forces from policy support and external restrictions, domestic equipment manufacturers are accelerating breakthroughs into core segments such as etching and thin-film deposition, as well as into tracks with extremely low localization rates such as metrology and lithography machines. Continuous construction of new production lines will keep providing validation windows, and order continuity will be significantly strengthened.

Related ETFs: Cx STAR Market Semiconductor ETF Huaxia (588170), Cx STAR Market Semiconductor Equipment ETF Huatai-Pei Rui (588710), Cx STAR Market Semiconductor Equipment ETF Penghua (589020), Semiconductor Equipment ETF Guotai (159516), Semiconductor Equipment ETF E Fund (159558)