The scarce resources sector is showing differentiated performance, with the Petrochemical Industry Index rising for six consecutive days, and chemical ETFs continuing to attract capital.

On March 30, the scarce resources sector showed a differentiated trend; the petrochemical industry continued to perform strongly, while the rare-earth sector saw a modest pullback. As of the close, the CSI Petrochemical Industry Index rose 0.9%, delivering six consecutive sessions of gains; the CSI Rare-Earth Industry Index fell 0.4%, with clear divergence within the sector.

Judging from index valuation and capital flows (data source: Wind, as of March 30, 2026):

CSI Petrochemical Industry Index: price-to-book ratio of 1.8x; the valuation percentile has been 82.6% since the index was launched in 2009. Basic chemicals and petroleum/petrochemical industries account for over 90% of the exposure, benefiting from the resonance between energy prices and industry cyclical conditions;

CSI Rare-Earth Industry Index: price-to-book ratio of 3.4x; the valuation percentile has been 94.2% since the index was launched in 2016. It covers the entire rare-earth supply chain, from mining, processing, to applications.

WIND data shows that the chemical-industry ETF, E Fund (516570, feeder fund A/C: 020104/020105), which tracks the CSI Petrochemical Industry Index, received net capital inflows for two consecutive trading days. Its latest size reached RMB 2.3 billion, ranking first among ETFs tracking the same underlying. The product’s management fee rate is only 0.15% per year.

According to CICC (China Merchants Securities), there is limited room for further significant downside for A-shares. Going forward, investors may consider directions such as petrochemicals and chemicals with relatively high levels of cyclical conditions or signs of improvement. The petrochemical sector’s earnings resilience and valuation advantages are worth paying attention to.

Risk warning: Funds involve risks; invest with caution.