(Bloomberg) — For Shao Qifeng, the frenzy in Chinese stock trading in the last five sessions was a first in his 15-year market career.
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The Beijing-based chief investment officer at Ying An Asset Management Co. has been receiving non-stop client inquiries in his WeChat groups asking whether this is the time to buy stocks, after authorities unveiled a stimulus blitz last week.
“I think this means we are in the second phase of a bull market, when stocks are getting wide attention,” Shao said. “On the surface, I’m keeping my cool, but deep down in my heart I’m celebrating.”
Shao’s experience was shared by many stock investors in China where the benchmark index posted the biggest gain since 2008 on Monday, entering a bull market. The rush into the market before a weeklong holiday has also sent trading turnover to a record high. The interest was so intense that broker applications collapsed and requests for opening trading accounts surged, according to local media.
The latest leap came after three of China’s largest cities relaxed rules for homebuyers, while the central bank also moved to lower mortgage rates. The measures were among the key elements of a sweeping stimulus package released last Tuesday that also included interest rate cuts, freeing-up of cash for banks, as well as liquidity support for stocks. Meanwhile, the Golden Dragon index of US-listed Chinese stocks rallied 4.7%.
While Chinese stocks have produced multiple false dawns…
