Industrial Chain Integration and High-End Manufacturing Emerge as Two Major Themes in A-Share M&A

Securities Daily Reporter Wu Yixuan

Recently, M&A restructuring activity in the A-share market has remained active. According to data from Eastmoney Choice, over 20 A-share listed companies disclosed the latest updates on their M&A and restructuring progress since last week, covering industries such as electronic materials, new energy, energy, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and biotechnology. The Securities Daily review found that the current A-share M&A market is gradually showing characteristics of “resource integration as the key driving force and high-end advanced manufacturing as the core track.”

Actively Promoting Industry Chain Resource Integration

Against the backdrop of accelerated quality improvement and efficiency in the A-share M&A market, leveraging mergers and acquisitions to achieve upstream and downstream resource integration in the industry chain has become an important choice for listed companies to strengthen their main businesses and enhance core competitiveness.

For example, Shentong Express Co., Ltd. (referred to as “Shentong Express”) announced on March 17 that its subsidiary plans to acquire 100% equity of Jieyang Chuan Yun IoT Technology Co., Ltd. and Chengdu Chuan Shen IoT Technology Co., Ltd. for 280 million yuan in cash. This acquisition is significant for Shentong Express to expand its market presence in the Southwest region and improve its transfer network layout, helping to reduce core operational costs and further strengthen its core competitiveness and long-term sustainable development capabilities.

Relevant industry insiders told Securities Daily that “at present, listed companies are using M&A and restructuring to strengthen and optimize the supply chain, showing a trend of simultaneous increases in both quantity and quality. Policies like the ‘Six M&A Rules’ streamline approval processes, combined with industry upgrade demands, driving companies to improve and strengthen through acquisitions. This trend aligns with the inherent logic of high-quality economic development.”

Zhou Di, an expert from the National Science and Technology Expert Database of the Ministry of Science and Technology, said, “While some listed companies actively use M&A to integrate upstream and downstream or fill gaps, effectively optimizing business structures and enhancing anti-cyclical capabilities, companies also need to have precise risk control and market judgment abilities to avoid blind integration.”

Competing in the High-End Manufacturing Track

With the rapid rise of sectors such as semiconductor chips, core components for robots, and ultra-precision intelligent processing, high-end manufacturing has become a core target for M&A strategies among A-share listed companies.

Zhejiang Dashengda Packaging Co., Ltd. (referred to as “Dashengda”) announced on March 19 that it plans to invest 550 million yuan to acquire a 22.9831% stake in Xiamen Xin Tong Semiconductor Technology Co., Ltd. (“Xin Tong Semiconductor”) and continue exploring new opportunities for advanced productive forces. Dashengda mainly engages in the research, development, production, printing, and sales of paper packaging products. The acquired Xin Tong Semiconductor specializes in the design, R&D, and sales of general high-performance graphics processing unit (GPU) chips.

On March 17, Zhejiang Jiemi Electronic Technology Co., Ltd. (“Jiemi Technology”) also announced plans to purchase 100% equity of Changsha Efuosi Technology Co., Ltd. through issuing shares and raising supporting funds. The announcement states that the company’s products include ion beam polishers, magnetorheological polishers, and other ultra-precision optical processing equipment. This acquisition will enable Jiemi Technology to quickly expand into the ultra-precision processing equipment sector and strategically broaden its business scope.

Wu Gaobin, Secretary-General of the New Productive Forces Committee of the China Civil Association, believes that “M&A restructuring is a catalyst for ‘technological breakthroughs’ and ‘industrial upgrades.’ Fields like semiconductors and new energy are characterized by ‘technology-intensive and capital-intensive’ features, and internal growth alone makes it difficult to break through bottlenecks quickly. Through M&A, companies can rapidly acquire core technologies, patent teams, and market share, shortening the cycle from ‘laboratory to production line.’”

Industry insiders generally believe that with continued policy empowerment and deepening industry upgrade demands, the A-share M&A market will further develop toward “precise industry integration and focus on high-end manufacturing.” Listed companies should use M&A as a link to strengthen industry chain collaboration and technological innovation capabilities, promoting their own high-quality development while helping to optimize and upgrade China’s industrial structure.