China’s craze for artificial-intelligence companies is supercharging the shares of some of the nation’s little-known publishers.
China Publishing & Media Ltd. is the biggest gainer on the Shanghai Composite index this quarter, extending this year’s advance to more than 200%. Three similar firms — China Science Publishing & Media Co., Southern Publishing & Media Co., and Changjiang Publishing & Media Co. — are also among the top 10 best performers on the Shanghai bourse since the start of April.
In Shenzhen meanwhile, Astro-century Education & Technology Co. is the best performer on the city’s exchange this quarter, with Guomai Culture & Media Co. and Tangel Publishing Co. also in the top five.
“Copyright properties will be more prominent given the overall regulatory trend,” especially as large AI model training in China still requires a lot of data, Founder Securities said in a research note published Tuesday. The broker favors state-backed publishers due to their ownership of critical data and government connections, it said.
The surge in publishers’ stocks shows interest may be reviving in China’s AI trade, which lost some of its steam recently after the authorities sought to tighten rules covering the sector. The rally had earlier spread across software developers, chipmakers, and health-care providers.
The shares of some publishers are also rallying due to speculation their government connections will see them benefit from Beijing’s pledge to let state-owned firms have access to more capital and play a greater role.
