April has turned out to be a pretty good month for equity investors. After all three major indices dropped to 52-week low in early March, stocks rebounded last month after financial firms indicated that the worst part of the current crisis may be over. The Dow ended April with a gain of 4.54%, the S&P added 4.75%, and the NASDAQ climbed 5.87%.
Chinese stocks traded on U.S. exchanges also had a solid month in April, rising along with U.S. stocks. Chinese ADRs also got support from favorable policies adopted by Chinese security regulators aimed to stabilize the market after the Shanghai Composite Index (^SSEC) lost half of its value in less than half a year. For the month, SSEC jumped 6.35% and the Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index (^HSI) surged 12.72%. Among Chinese ADRs, VanceInfo Technologies (VIT) led the way with a gain of 142.60%, followed by Sohu.com (SOHU)’s 53.18%. Chinese search engine Baidu.com (BIDU) also recorded a 52.57% gain in share price. The month’s biggest loser was Agria (GRO), China’s agriculture products, such as seeds and feeding products, provider, which saw its share tumbled nearly 50%, despite record food price.
| Name | Symbol | 04/30/08 Price | April return | YTD return |
| 3SBio | SSRX | 10.45 | 19.57% | -29.77% |
| 51Job | JOBS | 18.4 | 13.23% | 2.11% |
| Acorn international | ATV | 6.86 | -9.97% | -26.47% |
| Actions Semiconductor | ACTS | 3.86 | 29.98% | -5.39% |
| Agria | GRO | 4.33 | -48.14% | -53.59% |
| AirMedia Group | AMCN | 19.86 | 24.91% | -11.26% |
| Aluminum Corp of China | ACH | 42.82 | 5.91% | -15.44% |
| APT Satellite | ATS | 1.53 | -0.65% | -28.84% |
| ASAT Holdings | ASTT | 0.00% | 0.00% | |
| ATA* | ATAI | 10.67 | 20.43% | 12.32% |
| Baidu.com | BIDU | 365.6 | 52.57% | -6.21% |
| China Architectural Engineering | RCH | 5.45 | 0.00% | -36.99% |
| China Digital TV | STV | 16.8625 | -9.97% | -37.50% |
| China Eastern Airlines | CEA | 43.39 | -15.58% | -55.57% |
| China Finance Online | JRJC | 18.45 | 32.73% | -16.14% |
| China Grentech | GRRF | 4.72 | -7.81% | -46.61% |
| China Life Insurance | LFC | 65.6 | 26.01% | -14.25% |
| China Medical Tech | CMED | 37.4 | -8.98% | -15.75% |
| China Mobile | CHL | 86.32 | 15.08% | -0.63% |
| China Nepstar | NPD | 11.77 | -13.46% | -33.05% |
| China Petro & Chemical | SNP | 107.51 | 25.04% | -27.46% |
| China Southern Airlines | ZNH | 32.84 | -17.18% | -49.82% |
| China Sunergy | CSUN | 8.22 | 12.60% | -50.24% |
| China Techfaith | CNTF | 5.46 | -0.36% | -5.86% |
| China Telecom | CHA | 67.59 | 7.58% | -13.42% |
| China Netcom | CN | 61.05 | 5.28% | 2.78% |
| China Unicom | CHU | 21.57 | 1.41% | -3.71% |
| ChinaEdu | CEDU | 7 | 5.58% | -17.65% |
| City Telecom (HK) | CTEL | 4.51 | 0.67% | -20.18% |
| CNinsure | CISG | 14.05 | 21.86% | -12.13% |
| CNOOC | CEO | 177.55 | 20.96% | 6.04% |
| Ctrip.com | CTRP | 62.06 | 17.05% | 7.99% |
| E-House | EJ | 16.72 | 27.15% | -29.84% |
| eLong | LONG | 9.37 | 9.85% | 13.16% |
| Focus Media | FMCN | 36.89 | 4.95% | -35.06% |
| Fuqi International | FUQI | 8.25 | 15.71% | -0.60% |
| Giant Interactive | GA | 16.28 | 28.70% | 25.42% |
| Global Sources | GSOL | 13.89 | -6.46% | -50.83% |
| Guangshen Railway | GSH | 28.88 | 9.81% | -18.97% |
| Gushan Environmental Energy | GU | 12.5 | -4.36% | 33.69% |
| Home Inns & Hotel | HMIN | 22.41 | 13.81% | -37.09% |
| Huaneng Power | HNP | 33.65 | 10.18% | -18.52% |
| Hurray! | HRAY | 2.77 | 0.36% | -30.40% |
| Hutchison Telecomm | HTX | 21.05 | -2.14% | -7.06% |
| JA Solar | JASO | 24.01 | 29.09% | 3.18% |
| Kongzhong | KONG | 4.23 | -2.31% | -30.54% |
| Las Vegas Sands | LVS | 76.22 | 3.50% | -26.04% |
| LDK Solar | LDK | 31.74 | 17.56% | -32.48% |
| Linktone | LTON | 2.15 | -20.37% | -30.42% |
| Longtop Financial Tech. | LFT | 19.95 | 5.67% | -15.75% |
| Melco PBL Entertainment | MPEL | 13.2 | 15.99% | 14.19% |
| Mindray Medical | MR | 34 | 17.48% | -20.88% |
| Netease.com | NTES | 22.32 | 16.19% | 17.72% |
| New Oriental Education | EDU | 75.06 | 15.73% | -6.86% |
| Ninetowns inter | NINE | 2.23 | -4.70% | -30.09% |
| Noah Education* | NED | 6.161 | 10.81% | -23.56% |
| O2Micro International | OIIM | 7.52 | -2.72% | -34.84% |
| Perfect World | PWRD | 28.72 | 26.46% | 3.01% |
| PetroChina | PTR | 151.14 | 20.61% | -13.87% |
| QiaoXing Mobile Comm. | QXM | 6.43 | 6.99% | -23.91% |
| Renesola* | SOL | 16.75 | 47.45% | 28.85% |
| Semiconductor Manufacturing | SMI | 3.81 | 8.55% | -26.59% |
| Shanda Interactive | SNDA | 34.29 | 17.84% | 3.03% |
| Simcere Pharmaceutical | SCR | 12.59 | 20.36% | -9.10% |
| Sina | SINA | 46.2 | 31.06% | 4.29% |
| Sinopec | SHI | 39.55 | 13.03% | -35.23% |
| Sohu.com | SOHU | 69.13 | 53.18% | 26.80% |
| Solarfun Power | SOLF | 13.43 | 11.36% | -58.87% |
| Spreadtrum Communications | SPRD | 8.71 | 0.11% | -28.96% |
| Suntech Power | STP | 44.73 | 10.28% | -45.66% |
| The9 | NCTY | 21.47 | 4.73% | 0.19% |
| Tongjitang Chinese Medicine | TCM | 8.2 | -0.24% | -16.75% |
| Trina Solar | TSL | 42.18 | 37.22% | -21.60% |
| UTstarcom | UTSI | 3.25 | 14.44% | 18.61% |
| VanceInfo Technologies | VIT | 14.75 | 142.60% | 63.89% |
| Vimicro International | VIMC | 3.39 | 23.29% | -9.84% |
| VisionChina Media | VISN | 14.75 | 33.12% | 73.53% |
| WSP Holdings | WH | 6.62 | -4.06% | -27.25% |
| Wuxi Pharmatech | WX | 18.44 | -17.53% | -36.94% |
| XinHua Finance Media | XFML | 4.15 | 31.33% | -30.83% |
| Xinyuan Real Estate | XIN | 9.03 | 7.63% | -36.54% |
| Yazhou Coal Mining | YZC | 92.68 | 30.48% | -4.51% |
| Yingli Green Energy | YGE | 22.03 | 28.83% | -43.02% |
*2008 IPO
For the month, two widely held EFTs that mainly invest in China also rose sharply. iShares FTSE/Xinhua China 25 Index (FXI) gained 17.50% in April while PowerShares Gloden Dragon Halter USX China (PGJ) climbed 15.55%.
