A-shares Closing Review | Shanghai Composite Index Slightly Up, ChiNext Weakens, Sugar and Agricultural Chains Surge to Limit Up

On September 8, the three major A-share indexes had mixed performances, with the Shanghai Composite Index slightly up and the ChiNext Index weakened. By the close, the Shanghai Composite Index rose by 0.20% to 3940.55 points, the Shenzhen Component Index fell by 0.52% to 13703.21 points, the ChiNext Index dropped by 1.15% to 3359.72 points, the STAR Market 50 Index decreased by 1.52% to 1591.00 points, and the BSE 50 Index fell by 0.97% to 1086.25 points. The total trading volume in the Shanghai and Shenzhen markets reached 19,603.35 billion yuan, an increase of 14.316 billion yuan compared to the previous trading day. There were 3,417 rising stocks and 2,026 declining stocks in the entire market, with 75 hitting the daily limit up and 1 hitting the limit down, making the proportion of rising stocks approximately 61%. In terms of sectors, sugar, sugar substitutes (sweeteners), agriculture, Shenzhen Agricultural Power Group processing, fertilizers and pesticides, coke, oil service engineering, and real estate services were among the top gainers; while sectors such as EDA, liquid metals, automotive chips, semiconductors, electronic chemicals, electronics, consumer electronics, and liquid cooling saw the largest declines. Driving Factors International sugar prices surged, and expectations of tightened global sugar supply and demand heated up, leading to a collective strength in the sugar and sugar substitutes sectors. The Thai Sugar Association projected that Thai sugar production may fall below 10 million tons for the 2026-2027 crushing season (down from 12 million tons in the previous season); data from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization showed that the global food price index rose to a new high since December 2022 in August, combined with the expectation of a "super El Nio," led to increases in the agricultural planting chain and the fertilizers and pesticides sector; on September 7, copper futures on the London Metal Exchange reached a historic high, breaking through $14,530 per ton at one point, strengthening the nonferrous metals sector, especially copper; the real estate services sector strengthened, while the coke and coal sectors warmed up, with Yunnan Coal & Energy hitting the daily limit up. Popular Sectors 1. [Agricultural Planting Chain] Sugar, sugar substitutes, agriculture, Shenzhen Agricultural Power Group processing, and fertilizers and pesticides all saw significant rises. COFCO Sugar Holding, Hongmian Zhihui Science and Technology Innovation, and Baolingbao Biology hit the daily limit up, Gansu Yasheng Industrial had four consecutive limit-ups, and Shandong Sanyuan Biotechnology rose over 14%. Catalysts: The surge in international sugar prices and the record high in the global food price index, combined with expectations of a "super El Nio." 2. [Nonferrous Metals (Copper)] The copper sector led the gains, with Guangdong Jingyi Metal hitting the daily limit up, North Copper reaching the limit up, and Jiangxi Copper, Western Mining, and Tongling Nonferrous Metals Group following suit. Catalyst: On September 7, copper futures on the London Metal Exchange rose to a historic high, breaking through $14,530 per ton at one point. 3. [Real Estate Services] Shenzhen Worldunion Group Incorporated, 5i5j Holding Group, and ShenZhen Properties & Resources Development (Group) Ltd. hit the daily limit up, while China Wuyi Co., Ltd., Shenzhen SDG Service, and China Enterprise also saw increases. Adjusting Sectors The technology sectors, including semiconductors, EDA, liquid metals, automotive chips, consumer electronics, and liquid cooling, faced notable declines, with Jones Tech Plc dropping by over 15%, Shenzhen FRD Science & Technology falling nearly 6%, and domestic GPU newcomers like Moore Threads continuing to drop. These sectors previously saw significant gains and, on that day, experienced notable declines as the market demonstrated clear sector rotation.