China solar stocks rise on hope of a turnaround

China solar stocks rose in Friday's trading after a polysilicon manufacturer said that the industry has reached its bottom. Regulators also called for additional measures to increase sector revenue.

Silicon wafers, which convert sunlight into electricity, are made from polysilicon.

The government campaign to curb excessive and unsustainable competition between Chinese firms in order to increase solar prices was a major factor in driving up the stock price.

GCL Technology Holdings shares closed Friday with a gain of more than 10%. Solar producer Trina Solar gained over 9%, and Tongwei gained more than 6%.

Requests for comments from the companies were not answered.

In a Bloomberg TV Interview on Thursday, the chief financial officer for polysilicon giant Daqo New Energy Corp stated that the sector had already reached its bottom and was recovering. He said that the plan to buy and close over 1,000,000 tons of industry capacity with the help of the government is progressing.

He said that the company would start to be profitable before the end the year.

The plan released by China's Industry Ministry, which targets a minimum annual revenue growth of 5% in the solar industry, added to the positive sentiment.

(source: Reuters)