Wall Street changes its tune on China as DeepSeek and policy hopes win back investors: ‘Confidence does feel like it’s returned’

What a difference a year makes. 

In early 2024, China was struggling through a sluggish post-pandemic recovery, thanks to weak consumption, ongoing worries about property, and a continued hangover from a regulatory crackdown on China’s tech sector. 

The pessimism was reflected in equity markets: listings in Hong Kong, the traditional channel for Chinese companies looking for foreign capital, had dried up amid regulatory scrutiny. The Hang Seng Index, the city’s benchmark index...