Two champion fund managers face the "oil price test" head-on: heavy holdings in airline stocks—what about their performance?

Cailian Press, March 24 (Reporter Li Di) Since March, international oil prices have risen significantly, leading to a sharp decline in airline stocks, and funds heavily invested in the airline sector are under performance pressure.

The product of Cui Chenlong, the champion fund manager of active equity funds in 2021, has faced considerable drawdowns due to heavy holdings in airline stocks. For example, the Qianhai Open Source Research-Driven Hybrid A, managed by him, had China Eastern Airlines (A-shares) as its top holding at the end of Q4 last year. Additionally, its third-largest holding was China Southern Airlines (Hong Kong shares). As of March 23, the product’s return since March is -12.28%.

Lin Yingrui, the performance champion of semi-annual mixed funds in the first half of 2021, has also recently experienced performance pressure due to heavy holdings in airline stocks. His funds, GF Ruiyi Leading Hybrid A and GF Value Leading Hybrid A, both included six airline stocks among their top ten holdings at the end of Q4 last year. Both funds have lost over 20% since March.

Moreover, several other fund managers, including Yang Chao, Jiang Yanglei, Zhu Huilin, and Zheng Xiaobing, manage products that have also faced significant declines due to heavy holdings in airline stocks, with losses exceeding 15% since March.

Industry insiders point out that the short-term trend of airline stocks is heavily influenced by oil prices. However, over a longer cycle, domestic airlines with large dollar-denominated debts could benefit from the appreciation of the RMB, as their profits may improve. If Middle East conflicts ease and oil prices fall, airline stocks could see valuation recovery amid the long-term RMB appreciation trend.

Cui Chenlong’s multiple products are heavily invested in airline stocks, and their performance has been under pressure since March.

Since March, international oil prices have risen sharply, and funds heavily invested in airline stocks are generally underperforming.

Taking Cui Chenlong of Qianhai Open Source Fund as an example, by the end of last year, his managed product, Qianhai Open Source Research-Driven Hybrid A, had China Eastern Airlines (A-shares) and China Southern Airlines (Hong Kong shares) among its top ten holdings, with proportions of 7.36% and 5.84%, respectively. China Eastern Airlines was the top holding.

As of March 23, the net value of this product has fallen 12.28% since March. However, over a longer period, the product has still achieved steady returns. Established in June 2025, it has since gained 48.28% as of March 23 this year.

Cui Chenlong was once considered a “dark horse” fund manager. He officially became a fund manager in July 2020 and quickly became the annual performance champion of active equity funds within just over a year. In 2021, his management of Qianhai Open Source Utility achieved an annual return of 119.42%, ranking first among active equity funds in the market. However, this product faced significant setbacks in 2022 and 2023, with performance recovering in 2024 and 2025.

Besides Qianhai Open Source Research-Driven Hybrid A, Cui Chenlong also manages two other funds that, at the end of Q4 last year, had over 10% of their total holdings in airline stocks.

Specifically, among the top ten holdings of Qianhai Open Source Shanghai-Hong Kong Deep Non-Cyclical Stock A, three are airline companies listed in Hong Kong: Bank of China Aviation Leasing, China Eastern Airlines, and China Southern Airlines, with holdings of 4.46%, 4.22%, and 2.69%, respectively. The top ten holdings of Qianhai Open Source Research-Selected Hybrid A include two A-share listed airline stocks: China Eastern Airlines and China Southern Airlines, with holdings of 5.82% and 5.04%.

As of March 23, the return since March of Qianhai Open Source Research-Selected Hybrid A is -10.58%, and the since-inception return of Qianhai Open Source Shanghai-Hong Kong Deep Non-Cyclical Stock A is -12.97%.

Industry insiders note that because the overall industry allocation of these three products is relatively balanced, even if performance is pressured by declines in airline stocks, the level of drawdowns remains manageable. Qianhai Open Source Research-Selected Hybrid A, established in August 2025, still has a positive return of 11.15% as of March 23 this year. Over the past two years, its return is 55.63%, ranking in the top quarter among similar funds.

Many active equity products are heavily invested in airline stocks, with losses exceeding 15% since March.

Besides Cui Chenlong, Lin Yingrui of GF Fund also has a heavy allocation to airline stocks.

His GF Ruiyi Leading Hybrid A had its top six holdings at the end of Q4 last year all in A-share listed airline stocks: China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines, Spring Airlines, Air China, Huaxia Airlines, and Juneyao Airlines, with a combined holding of 49.81%.

Similarly, GF Value Leading Hybrid A’s top ten holdings at the end of Q4 last year include six airline stocks: China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines (Hong Kong shares), and Huaxia Airlines, Spring Airlines, Air China, and Juneyao Airlines (A-shares), with a combined proportion of 45.66%.

Due to their high allocation to airline stocks, these two funds have underperformed since oil prices rose in March. As of March 23, GF Ruiyi Leading Hybrid A’s return since March is -20.46%, and GF Value Leading Hybrid A’s is -22.03%.

In the first half of 2021, Lin Yingrui’s GF Value Leading Hybrid A achieved a return of 40.16%, making it the top performer among semi-annual mixed funds.

In addition to Lin Yingrui, several other fund managers have also experienced performance pressure due to heavy holdings in airline stocks. Yang Chao’s Jinxin Consumer Upgrade Stock A had its top six holdings all in airline stocks at the end of Q4 last year, with a total proportion of 55.64%. As of March 23, its return since March is -19.23%.

Jiang Yanglei and Zhu Huilin jointly manage Debang Major Consumption Hybrid A, which had five airline stocks among its top ten holdings at the end of Q4 last year, with a total proportion of 35.8%. As of March 23, its return since March is -17.87%.

Zheng Xiaobing manages HSBC Jintrust Small and Medium Cap Stock, which had four airline stocks among its top ten holdings at the end of Q4 last year, with a total proportion of 36.08%. As of March 23, its return since March is -17.2%.

Industry analysts point out that the short-term trend of airline stocks is heavily influenced by oil prices. However, over a longer cycle, airline stocks are expected to benefit from the RMB’s appreciation.

Because domestic airlines purchase and lease aircraft with large dollar-denominated debts, RMB appreciation will lead to exchange gains when converting dollar debts, directly boosting reported net profits. Over the long term, if Middle East conflicts ease and oil prices fall, airline stocks could see valuation recovery amid the long-term RMB appreciation trend.