The Middle East situation triggers helium supply alert; Walter Gas issues a notice of abnormal activity stating that price increases will be limited.

Due to the impact of Middle Eastern geopolitical conflicts driving up helium prices, A-shares helium concept stocks rose against the trend on March 23. Among them, Huate Gas surged nearly 15%, JinHong Gas and Hangyang Co. increased over 5%. That evening, Huate Gas issued an abnormal stock price movement announcement, stating that there are no major matters that should be disclosed but have not been disclosed, and the sales proportion of related products is limited.

Speculators engage in high-level matching trades

The announcement shows that on March 19, 20, and 23, Huate Gas’s closing prices deviated by more than 30% cumulatively over three consecutive trading days. On March 23, the company’s stock trading volume surged, reaching 1.5 billion yuan. The龙虎榜 (top traders list) indicated active trading by Shanghai speculators.

Specifically, the Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect designated seat was both the top buyer and seller, with a net purchase of 65.56 million yuan. Additionally, Goldman Sachs (China) Shanghai Pudong New Area Century Avenue Securities, JPMorgan Shanghai Yin Cheng Middle Road Securities, and CITIC Securities Shanghai Branch were among the top five buyers and sellers simultaneously. The top five trading seats had a combined net purchase of over 100 million yuan, accounting for 11.22% of the total trading volume.

Limited price increase

On the news front, Iran recently conducted military strikes on Qatar’s natural gas export facilities. Qatar hosts the world’s largest single-day natural gas field, with the Ras Laffan facility being the largest liquefied natural gas plant globally. Helium, a byproduct of natural gas production at this facility, accounts for about 30% of global helium supply. The Ras Laffan facility suffered “large-scale” damage, causing spot helium prices to double within 14 days, with contract premiums exceeding 30%.

In the semiconductor manufacturing sector, helium is an essential and irreplaceable raw material used in wafer cooling processes.

In this abnormal movement announcement, Huate Gas stated that it has noted rumors of price increases for some of its gas products. After verification, the company confirmed that the sales proportion of these products is limited, and the price adjustment scope is limited. The company expects limited impact on its full-year 2026 performance.

The performance quick report shows that Huate Gas expects to achieve a total operating revenue of 1.419 billion yuan in 2025, an increase of 1.72% year-on-year, and a net profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company of 144 million yuan, a decrease of 22.17% year-on-year.