CITIC Securities: Fund increased holdings of small-cap growth and manufacturing A shares in the first quarter of 2026, the A-share market may continue to show characteristics of a structural rally in the future.

CITIC Securities research report stated that the net asset size of public funds reached a historical high of 37.8 trillion yuan. In the first quarter, the positions of active equity funds fell, the concentration of holdings marginally decreased, equity issuance warmed up but stock ETFs saw large net redemptions, leading to overall net outflows of funds. Active fund holdings showed a clear structural adjustment, actively increasing allocations to small-cap growth and midstream manufacturing sectors, with a focus on increasing positions in communications, new energy, and basic chemicals, and reducing holdings in electronics and non-ferrous metals. The industry allocation model constructed based on public fund holdings has shown steady performance, with a return of 15.2% from the beginning of the year to April 22nd, currently bullish on industries such as communications, defense and military, trade and retail, and machinery. Taking into account the latest fund position calculations and ETF fund monitoring, the manufacturing sector has shown strong resilience in terms of funds, indicating that the A-share market may continue to follow structural market trends in the future.