The Hang Seng Tech Index has been on a roller-coaster ride in the last 12 months. The gauge, which marks its one-year anniversary on Tuesday, was up 59% at its February peak but has since seen more than $551 billion in market value wiped out amid Beijing’s clampdown on the sector.That has reduced the gain to nearly 6% as of last Friday, compared to more than 40% for the MSCI World Information Technology Index and the NASDAQ-100 Index. The measure also lags onshore peers: the ChiNext Index is up 35% in the period.
The underperformance highlights regulatory risks for one of the fastest-growing sectors of China’s economy. Beijing’s bold moves to rein in the nation’s powerful tech firms such as Jack Ma’s Ant Group Co. and Didi Global Inc. have sent global investors fleeing on concerns over China’s tighter grips on data while relations with Washington remain difficult.