Public Fund Quantitative Strategy AUM Exceeds RMB 320 Billion in H1 2026, July Excess Returns Slide Broadly

Since July, global capital market volatility has intensified, with the technology sector slumping and net asset values (NAV) of public fund quantitative products experiencing notable drawdowns. Wind data show that among more than 1,000 index-enhanced products on the market, excluding those launched in July, over 90% recorded negative returns for the month. About 100 products posted single-month NAV declines exceeding 20%. On excess returns, nearly 40% of index-enhanced products reported negative excess returns in July. The A and C shares of Zheshang CSI All-Share Index Enhanced Fund and Yinhua CSI A500 Index Enhanced Fund saw monthly excess returns fall below -10%. NAV drawdowns for active quantitative products were more pronounced: over 70% reported negative monthly returns, some with NAV declines exceeding 30%, and more than 50% of active quant products recorded negative excess returns in July.

The severe July drawdown quickly eroded accumulated excess returns from earlier periods. Huarun Yuanda Quantitative Preferred A had entered the top ten active quant products by excess return in the first half of 2024, with a 49.94% gain, but its July excess return plunged to -32.87%, narrowing its year-to-date excess return to -0.72%. Dongwu Anxiang Quantitative A posted a July excess return of -28.93%, wiping out a 6.58% gain from the first half and bringing its year-to-date excess return to -21.32%. Portfolio data from the second quarter show that Huarun Yuanda Quantitative Preferred A's top ten heavy holdings concentrated in technology names such as Biwin Storage, Jingwang Electronics, Dongshan Precision, and Montage Technology. Dongwu Anxiang Quantitative A mainly held lithium battery and power-related stocks.

Some quantitative products demonstrated relative resilience recently. Among index-enhanced products, 14 funds achieved excess returns exceeding 10% in July, with the spread between the highest and lowest reaching over 30 percentage points. Among active quant products, 13 funds, including Jiutai Tianli Quantitative A and Western Lead Securities Specialized New Quantitative Stock Selection A, posted July excess returns above 20%, with the spread between top and bottom reaching about 58 percentage points.

In the first half of 2026, the scale of public fund quantitative products expanded notably. Second-quarter data show that index-enhanced product AUM exceeded RMB 320 billion, reaching RMB 322.17 billion, a quarter-on-quarter increase of 12.19%. Active quant product AUM grew to about RMB 180 billion, up more than 31% quarter-on-quarter. Excluding products launched in 2026, over 60% of both index-enhanced and active quant products had positive excess returns in the first half. Active quant products showed greater volatility in excess returns: the A and C shares of Guotai Juxin Quantitative Stock Selection doubled their first-half excess returns, while the A and C shares of Jinxin Quantitative Selection achieved gains exceeding 70% in the first half.

Public fund firms continue to increase their quantitative offerings. Wind data show that the industry launched 28 active quant products in the full year 2025, while 27 have already been introduced in 2026. Huaxia Zhisheng Panorama raised RMB 15 billion in a single day, with a final allotment ratio of 33.25%. Tianzhi Zhihang Quantitative raised its fundraising cap from RMB 1.5 billion to RMB 2 billion and completed fundraising in one day, with an allotment ratio of 21.64%. Nearly 20 active quant products are currently awaiting regulatory approval from the China Securities Regulatory Commission.