What happened
Shares of DiDi Global (DIDI 2.28%), Alibaba (BABA +1.75%), and NetEase (NTES 0.19%) were all rising today on no company-specific news. All of these China-based companies are likely seeing their share prices jump today after a major sell-off of Chinese tech stocks over the past couple of weeks.
DiDi's stock was up 9.3%, Alibaba popped 4.9%, and NetEase's share price spiked 12.6% as of 2:15 p.m. EDT.
So what
Investors have ditched many Chinese stocks over the past couple of weeks after the Chinese government appeared to tighten its grip on tech companies in the country. Much of the recent concerns started when the Chinese government indicated that DiDi Global, a ridesharing company in China, could face major fines or even the delisting of its stock.
Image source: Getty Images.
DiDi went public just last month, and its listing came as the Cyberspace Administration of China conducted a cybersecurity review of the company. The decision to go public may have been interpreted as a move to push back against the Chinese government's authority.
The result led to China threatening fines against DiDi, suspension of part of its operations, or even delisting. This, of course, spooked DiDi investors -- and investors in many other Chinese companies -- and sent its shares tumbling.
Additionally, the Chinese government said within the past week that it will begin regulating online tutoring more closely. That caused investors to fear that more regulation could come to other industries as well.
All of that news came just a few months after Alibaba, an e-commerce giant in China, paid a $2.8 billion antitrust fine to the Chinese government.
But today's share price rebound by DiDi, Alibaba, and NetEase -- an online gaming, e-commerce, and community platform -- indicates that at least some investors are reversing their concerns about Chinese investments.
Their renewed optimism may have come after some major publications in China tried to calm market fears. Reuters reported that the state-owned Securities Times said today that, "The recent market decline to some extent reflects misinterpretation of policies and a venting of emotion."
It appears that at least some investors took the commentary to heart and began investing in China-based companies again, helping to push up the share prices of NetEase, Alibaba, and DiDi today.
Now what
Investors would be wise to remain cautious about investing in China-based techs stocks right now, despite today's gains. The Chinese government appears to be asserting more of its authority over publicly traded companies, and that's likely to make many investors nervous.
For example, DiDi was restricted from adding new customers and its app was removed from Chinese app stores this month -- two major blows to its business. If the government imposes more restrictions or fines on DiDi -- or does the same to other companies -- then investors can likely expect more share price drops from companies based in China.
