Asia’s Lesser-Known High-Tech Manufacturers Shine in 2021 Stock Market

(Nikkei Asia) — Semiconductor-equipment makers from Japan and China were among the biggest winners of Asia’s stock market in 2021, doubling their valuation from the end of last year amid robust demand for high-tech manufacturing.

Following last year’s Covid-driven stock market boom, which generated high-flying digital companies, Asian stock markets had a relatively tough year in 2021, with China’s regulatory crackdowns weighing on many of the country’s — and the region’s — most significant stocks. But global chip demand has given rise to some lesser-known companies, with logistics and financial companies also growing as the economy gradually recovers from the pandemic.