Shanghai, Feb 2, 2026, 10:07 GMT+8 — Regular session
- Rockchip Electronics Class A shares dropped roughly 2.6% in early trading
- After a strong January rally, chip stocks are now seeing some profit-taking pressure.
- Traders weigh mixed factory surveys alongside rising cost pressures ahead of the Lunar New Year
Rockchip Electronics Co., Ltd. Class A shares slipped 2.6% to 186.27 yuan by mid-morning Monday in Shanghai, bouncing between 185.00 and 190.41 yuan earlier. The stock was down 5.05 yuan on the day, with roughly 3.9 million shares changing hands, according to Investing.com data.
The move is significant now because money flowed heavily into Chinese chip exposure through February, then pulled back sharply at the first sign of weakness. A mainland chip industry index jumped more than 16% in January, while some semiconductor ETFs attracted net inflows as retail and institutional investors piled into “AI” and domestic chip themes, according to a 21jingji report. 21经济网
Macro signals are failing to inspire confidence. China’s official manufacturing PMI dropped to 49.3 in January, according to the National Bureau of Statistics, though the production sub-index remained above 50 at 50.6. “Operations have been volatile, but production kept expanding… giving a basis for stabilisation,” said Wen Tao, an analyst at the China Logistics Information Center, quoted by Xinhua News Agency. Xinhua News
A private survey painted a slightly different picture. The RatingDog general manufacturing PMI edged up to 50.3 in January from 50.1, marking its strongest reading since October, boosted by faster output and new orders, according to data compiled by S&P Global. Still, RatingDog founder Yao Yu warned, “If cost pressures persist while demand recovery is limited, profit margins will remain under pressure.” Reuters
Rockchip is moving on expectations laid out last week, not on fresh updates. In a Jan. 27 filing, the company projected 2025 revenue between 4.387 billion and 4.427 billion yuan, with net profit attributable to shareholders ranging from 1.023 billion to 1.103 billion yuan. That marks a hefty 72% to 85% jump from the previous year, driven by strong demand for its AIoT — AI plus internet-of-things — chips and platforms. The firm also noted that DDR memory shortages and rising prices since Q3 led some clients to switch storage solutions, causing a brief slowdown before a rebound in Q4.
The path isn’t straightforward. Chip designers risk margin pressure if memory and other component costs rise quicker than demand can handle. Plus, holiday-season slowdowns often throw near-term orders off balance.
Broker sentiment is shaping the story this week, too. A monthly roundup of brokerage “gold stock” picks highlights electronics names for February. Drivers include a climbing memory-price cycle, AI demand, and “domestic substitution.” Rockchip stood out, mentioned alongside peers like Hygon Information Technology and GigaDevice Semiconductor, according to Securities Times. STCN
According to Reuters company data, Rockchip develops and markets application processor system-on-chip products primarily for the AIoT sector.
What’s next hinges largely on macro trends and positioning, not fresh headlines. Traders are eyeing Tuesday’s China Caixin services PMI to gauge private-sector demand following factory surveys. Meanwhile, flows in and out of chip-sector thematic ETFs could reveal clues ahead of the Lunar New Year build-up.
