Chinese funds investors receive over 210 billion yuan of dividends in 2024: data

Chinese funds investors received over 210 billion yuan (about 30 billion U.S. dollars) of dividends as of Dec. 23 from more than 6,400 distributions in 2024, according to Wind Information, a leading company in financial software services in China.

Among these, several stock funds, mainly representing investments in the Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 Index (SHSZ300), have each yielded dividends value exceeding 1 billion yuan (about 137 million U.S. dollars), which has significantly boosted the total dividends of stock funds, nearly doubling compared to last year.

"The regular dividend distribution of funds in the long term indicates a profitable state and good operation, which requires higher demands on the funds' investment strategy and risk management capability. Therefore, it will attract more investors. Dividends from stock funds indicate the overall stable operation of the listed companies held by these funds, showcasing its profit and cash dividend capacity and reflecting the resilience of the overall economic fundamentals," said Sheng Fengyan, quantitative investment director at the Western Leadbank Fund Management Company Limited.

Notably, in newly issued funds, regular dividends have been highlighted as an innovative feature, attracting more investors' attention this year. It is understood that funds with dividends have seen a significant subscription among similar products.

"New index funds are required to distribute dividends based on contractual obligations when certain standards are met each quarter. By holding these products for the long term, investors can not only benefit from China's economic growth and aim for an increase in the fund's net value but also have the opportunity to receive regular cash dividends for discretionary use. This, to some extent, helps investors to face short-term market fluctuations more calmly, thereby firmly sticking to long-term investment philosophies," said Guo Peng, deputy general manager of J.P. Morgan Asset Management (China) Company Limited.

Chinese funds investors receive over 210 billion yuan of dividends in 2024: data

China's Shanghai-Suzhou-Huzhou high-speed railway officially entered service on Thursday,linking the financial hub of Shanghai with the historic cities of Suzhou and Huzhou in a major boost to regional connectivity.

The high-speed railway has a designed speed of 350 km per hour and spans 164 km, connecting Shanghai Hongqiao Station with Suzhou City in Jiangsu Province and Huzhou City in Zhejiang Province. The railway has eight stations, providing convenient access to major cities and towns along the route.

This is the first high-speed railway connecting the three major economic hubs of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai in the Yangtze River Delta, according to Chen Guoquan, the railway project designer from China Railway Construction Corporation.

Residents are excited about the operation as the new high-speed railway is expected to significantly reduce travel times and improve connectivity between the three cities.

"We're in Huzhou city. It's so convenient for us to travel by high-speed train to Shanghai. It's good for people like us, so I'm very delighted," said a passenger.

"We have several places to visit. All the four people are excited. They all arrived early," said another passenger.

Before this new train service, the journey between Huzhou and Shanghai took about two hours. Now, it only takes around 50 minutes.

With the new railway, the operating length of the railway network in the Yangtze River Delta region has surpassed 15,000 km, over half of which is high-speed rail.

Along the railway, high-end industries are expected to cluster, further accelerating the high-quality development of the economic belt, according to Zhang Zhipeng, associate professor at Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

Shanghai-Suzhou-Huzhou high-speed rail line starts operation