New York, January 9, 2026, 10:07 (EST) — Regular session
- VNET tacked on another 5% during morning hours, building on Thursday’s surge of more than 10%.
- Traders said investors were once again buying up China-focused AI and infrastructure stocks.
- Investors kept an eye on U.S. rates, along with a tariff decision that could drop as early as Friday.
VNET Group climbed roughly 5% to $10.86 in New York morning trading on Friday, stretching its rally. The U.S.-listed shares, tied to the China data center operator, have swung sharply in recent weeks.
After a 10.85% surge Thursday that left VNET finishing at $10.32, volume spiked to around 8.5 million shares—more than twice what traded Wednesday. Across those two sessions, the stock has climbed about 17% from where it settled on Wednesday, FinancialContent reports.
That buying spree has moved in tandem with broader demand for China risk, as upbeat forecasts for 2026 earnings and AI investments filter through. Goldman Sachs strategists, including Kinger Lau, called the “risk reward” profile for Chinese stocks “favourable,” noting AI-fueled profit growth and supportive policy momentum as key drivers, according to the South China Morning Post.
Macro trends played a role as well. Following the U.S. jobs data, Adam Sarhan, CEO of 50 Park Investments, described the labour force as “contracting” and pointed out that the softer numbers “give the Fed the ability to cut rates,” according to Reuters.
China-linked ADRs delivered a mixed performance on Friday, though VNET bucked the trend. Alibaba dropped roughly 3%. PDD edged lower. JD barely moved. Data-center rival GDS slipped, but Kingsoft Cloud managed a gain of nearly 3%.
VNET—previously called 21Vianet—operates carrier-neutral and cloud-neutral data centers while providing cloud and VPN services, a Reuters company profile shows. The company’s American depositary shares are listed in the U.S., offering investors a way into the China-based firm.
Even so, this trade is far from bulletproof. Goldman pointed to risks on its China outlook—think global slowdown, sudden geopolitical shocks, or a snapback in AI-related stock prices. Any of those can punish high-beta plays and drain buying interest in a hurry. More details at investingLive.
VNET’s been moving within a big 52-week band—from $16.13 down to $4.65—while trading volumes keep running above the recent 20-day average, according to Zacks Investment Research. The firm puts the company’s next earnings report around March 11, basing that on previous schedules.
Traders are watching for a U.S. Supreme Court decision on President Donald Trump’s tariffs, which, according to Reuters, could arrive as early as Friday—setting up possible swings in risk assets, especially for shares tied to China.
