21st Century Economic Report Journalist Yi Yanjun
In the past two months, HALO trading, characterized by &#34;Heavy Assets and Low Obsolescence,&#34; has gained popularity on Wall Street.
Concerns about &#34;AI technology rapidly iterating and disrupting the light asset model&#34; have led funds to flow from the software sector to high-barrier, demand-inelastic fields such as energy and utilities.
Reflecting this in the A-share market, sectors such as oil and petrochemicals, non-ferrous metals, basic chemicals, and electricity have performed well since the beginning of the year.
&#34;The logic of A-shares is highly compatible with HALO.&#34; Chen Xianshun, Chief Equity Strategy Analyst at Bosera Fund, pointed out to the 21st Century Economic Report that current positioning can consider focusing on three points: selecting leading companies with high barriers, high dividends, and low capital expenditures. At the same time, it is important to avoid pseudo-heavy assets and cyclical high-position targets; strictly control positions as a portfolio hedge, and not chase high emotional premiums; closely monitor interest rates, policy pricing, and supply-demand patterns, using cash flow and dividends as core valuation anchors, while downplaying short-term thematic fluctuations.
Focusing on the strategy itself, interviewed institutions analyzed that HALO trading is essentially a certain repricing of physical hard assets, centered on heavy asset barriers, low technological obsolescence, and perpetual cash flow, belonging to a long-term allocation strategy rather than a short-term thematic trade.
Additionally, some institutions believe that China possesses the most complete manufacturing system globally, a vast infrastructure stock, and leading resource production capacity layout, suggesting that Chinese assets may hold unique value under the HALO investment paradigm.
In early 2026, internationally renowned investment banks such as Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley began to promote HALO (Heavy Assets, Low Obsolescence) investment as a core strategy.
The core of HALO trading is to &#34;find assets that are at low risk of being replaced by AI, can withstand technological shocks, and possess long-term stability in an uncertain environment brought about by AI technology, shifting the investment logic from chasing growth to certainty and scarcity.&#34; The strategy research team at China International Capital Corporation pointed out.
Focusing on the industrial level, HALO assets are often located upstream in the industrial chain, covering heavy asset industries that provide basic services such as energy, raw materials, and logistics. These industries require significant upfront capital expenditures and have extremely high entry barriers; they are characterized as &#34;physical hard assets with high replacement costs, high construction barriers, and not easily disrupted by technology.&#34;
In the U.S. stock market, since 2026, there has been a clear trend of funds migrating towards heavy asset sectors.
According to institutional statistics, since the beginning of the year, the energy sector in the S&amp;P 500 index has risen over 25%, leading the market; industrials, materials, and utilities have also significantly outperformed the index. Meanwhile, the U.S. software sector has fallen over 30% from its highs.
Wells Fargo Fund pointed out that the &#34;reverse narrative&#34; of the AI era—HALO assets are ushering in a systematic value reassessment opportunity.
&#34;The rise of HALO trading is fundamentally rooted in the market's concerns that 'the rapid advancement of AI technology poses a risk of disruption to the business models of knowledge-intensive companies represented by software enterprises.' In contrast, HALO assets, which possess heavy assets and low obsolescence risk, may benefit from the relative certainty of future profits, winning the favor of market funds
Zheng Si'en, a senior researcher in the macro research team of the equity research department at China Europe Fund, pointed out to reporters.
A relevant person from CITIC Prudential Fund further analyzed that the rise of HALO trading is a re-pricing of the market's certainty and scarcity regarding AI.
He specifically analyzed that, first, the defensive demand under the panic of AI disrupting light asset industries has prompted funds to start shifting towards HALO assets (such as power grids, oil and gas, and non-ferrous metals) that have physical asset barriers and slow technological iterations. Second, the rigid demand for physical assets due to AI development, namely heavy asset infrastructure.
Third, the global supply chain restructuring and geopolitical risk premium have exacerbated the scarcity of physical assets, such as oil and gas, and key resources like minerals. Fourth, the cash flow preference in a high-interest-rate environment, coupled with the past trend of global funds flowing into light asset tech stocks, has led to insufficient investment in physical assets like mines, power grids, and refineries. As high interest rates become the norm, HALO companies, which have ready assets and generate abundant cash flow immediately, are favored by the market for their high dividends and stable cash flow attributes.
Some institutions even liken the HALO strategy to the &#34;physical foundation&#34; and &#34;safe haven&#34; of the AI era. Does this mean that the popularity of HALO trading has long-term logical support?
A relevant person from CITIC Prudential Fund believes that HALO trading has the potential to become a mainstream strategy, with the core logic being the irreplaceability of &#34;physical assets&#34; in the AI era, and the balance between long-term defensive and offensive strategies. HALO assets have the ability to traverse technological cycles, and the development of the AI industry injects growth into them, transitioning towards a dual attribute of &#34;value + growth.&#34;
In Chen Xianshun's view, HALO trading is essentially a certain re-pricing of physical hard assets under the high-interest-rate and AI reconstruction cycle, focusing on heavy asset barriers, low technological obsolescence, and perpetual cash flow, making it a long-term allocation strategy rather than a short-term thematic trade.
Is there room for the HALO trading, praised by top international investment banks, to unfold in the A-share market?
From the performance of related assets in the A-share market, Wind data shows that as of March 10, the indices for Shenwan Petroleum &amp; Petrochemical, Coal, Non-ferrous Metals, Basic Chemicals, Power Equipment, and Utilities have all risen by over 10% since the beginning of the year, leading the Shenwan first-level industry indices.
Among them, the interval increases for Shenwan Petroleum &amp; Petrochemical, Coal, and Non-ferrous Metals are 22.82%, 19.59%, and 18.55%, respectively, ranking at the forefront. Basic Chemicals and Power Equipment have increased by 16.96% and 13.53%, respectively.
Zheng Si'en believes that for the domestic market, the risk of disruption posed by advancements in AI technology to traditional knowledge-intensive enterprises also exists, thus there is a possibility for HALO trading in overseas markets to reflect in the domestic market.
He mentioned that HALO assets have two core characteristics: heavy assets and low obsolescence rates. The assets in the A-share market that meet these characteristics are mainly concentrated in upstream resource extraction, midstream chemicals, metal smelting, and utilities sectors
At the same time, relevant personnel from China CITIC Prudential Fund pointed out that the HALO strategy is applicable to the A-share market, which has a globally leading HALO asset reserve (such as manufacturing, energy, and non-ferrous metals).
He analyzed that it is generally divided into four major sectors: First, energy and electricity, with the core logic being the surge in energy consumption of AI data centers and the rigid demand for electricity, with sub-sectors including grid equipment, oil, nuclear power, and hydropower. Second, resources and materials with monopolistic supply, where the core logic is the surge in demand for basic materials brought about by AI and energy transition (such as copper, aluminum, and rare earths). Upstream resources have monopolistic characteristics, slow technological iteration, and sub-sectors include non-ferrous metals, coal, and basic chemicals.
Third, infrastructure and public utilities, with the core logic being non-replicable road rights and municipal necessities, stable demand, and strong anti-inflation capability, with sub-sectors such as railway transportation, water services, and public utilities. Fourth, communication infrastructure, with the core logic being the physical nodes of 5G, 6G, and data transmission, adopting a &#34;rental&#34; model, with rigid demand, and sub-sectors such as communication towers and data center infrastructure.
In addition, based on the relationship with AI development, Qianhai Kaiyuan Fund categorizes HALO assets into &#34;defensive&#34; and &#34;offensive&#34; types. Among them, the core value of defensive HALO assets lies in their &#34;difficulty to be disrupted,&#34; including: energy and basic materials, public utilities and transportation, national defense and military industry. When the valuation of technology sectors is too high and market volatility increases, funds often flow into these &#34;safe havens.&#34;
The core value of offensive HALO assets lies in &#34;the more AI develops, the stronger the demand,&#34; mainly distributed in: industrial metals, electrical equipment and grids, oil transportation and logistics. Qianhai Kaiyuan Fund believes that these assets possess the &#34;hard asset&#34; attributes of HALO assets and can share the dividends of AI development, making them a &#34;both offensive and defensive&#34; choice to some extent.
From the perspective of global physical resource demand, Franklin Templeton Fund judges that Chinese assets may have unique value under the HALO investment paradigm.
“Looking ahead, the restructuring of global manufacturing capacity and the increase in global capital expenditure driven by the expansion of the AI industry will create a long-term pull on physical consumption from the demand side, while China has the most complete manufacturing system in the world, a large stock of infrastructure, and a leading layout of resource production capacity, which shows unique value under the HALO investment narrative.” the company stated.
From an investment perspective, Franklin Templeton Fund reminds that HALO assets' &#34;reverse narrative&#34; is not a rejection of the AI technological revolution, but rather a hedge and coexistence with its socio-economic impact. Its essence is to anchor investment fields that possess &#34;anti-disruption&#34; resilience or &#34;spillover&#34; expansion opportunities during the &#34;creative destruction&#34; process of technological change.
Although HALO assets are undergoing a value reassessment, it is also necessary to pay attention to risk prevention during the investment process.
Relevant personnel from China CITIC Prudential Fund suggested that when laying out HALO assets, one should avoid &#34;blindly following the trend&#34; and focus on three major dimensions: valuation rationality, industry prosperity, and policy orientation.
Specifically, first, it is necessary to combine the characteristics of the A-share market, avoiding a simple replication of the logic of the U.S. stock market, and adjust the layout in accordance with the policy regulation and domestic demand recovery characteristics of the A-share market; second, pay attention to sector volatility risks, avoiding chasing high prices. HALO assets are mostly cyclical stocks, and when laying out, it is necessary to avoid chasing high prices; third, maintain a balanced allocation, avoiding excessive concentration on HALO assets; fourth, pay attention to policy and geopolitical risks. HALO assets (such as energy and non-ferrous metals) are significantly affected by policies (such as environmental policies and energy policies) and geopolitical conflicts, so it is necessary to track policy trends and geopolitical situations and adjust positions in a timely manner.
Zheng Si'en reminds that when laying out HALO assets, it is essential to focus on whether the assets have low elimination rate characteristics in the long cycle dimension. For example, traditional coal-fired power units, while having heavy asset attributes, may face new challenges in the long run due to the continuous advancement of new energy generation technologies and the increasingly strict global carbon emission standards.
Fidelity Fund also mentioned that some commodity and intermediate product prices have experienced significant increases, and high prices may be accompanied by high volatility, so attention should be paid to the resonance between price prosperity and performance realization. Pay attention to the long-term technological disruption &#34;gray rhino,&#34; as the long-term upgrade of technological paradigms may impact the underlying logic of some HALO assets.
In addition, Chen Xianshun reminds that the structural differentiation of the economy and the expectation of a shift in the interest rate cycle have made HALO trading very popular. It will not dominate the market comprehensively, but it can be considered as a defensive core configuration in institutional portfolios.
&#34;The A-share market has a natural adaptability, with a high proportion of real assets, stable cash flow from state-owned enterprises, and policy support for hard technology, which is highly consistent with HALO logic. The current layout can focus on three points: preferentially selecting leading companies with high barriers, high dividends, and low capital expenditures, avoiding pseudo-heavy assets and cyclical high-priced targets; strictly controlling positions as a hedge for the portfolio, and not chasing high emotional premiums; closely monitoring interest rates, policy pricing, and supply-demand patterns, using cash flow and dividends as core valuation anchors, while downplaying short-term thematic volatility,&#34; Chen Xianshun analyzed

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The heavy asset investment strategy has become popular on Wall Street, with high-threshold industries such as electricity performing exceptionally well. Analysts at Bosera Fund recommend focusing on leading companies with high barriers, high dividends, and low capital expenditures, while avoiding pseudo-heavy assets. HALO trading emphasizes finding stable assets amid the uncertainty of AI technology, suitable for long-term allocation. China's manufacturing and infrastructure provide unique value for HALO investments

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