At the midday break, CSI300 index was up 0.69%, and the Shanghai Composite index rose 0.76% to 3,254.12 points.

The Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong was trading 0.29 higher at 20,655.94.

AI-related sectors led gains in both onshore and offshore markets.

The CSI Semiconductor Industry Index surged 4.3% to a five-week high, and the Hang Seng Tech Index climbed 1% to the highest level since last October.

Shares of chipmaker Naura surged 7.7%, their biggest single-day advance in nearly three months, while SMIC’s Hong Kong-listed shares rallied nearly 6% to a record high.

Enthusiasm for domestic AI-related firms showed no signs of abating after DeepSeek disrupted the global industry last month with advanced models at low cost.

“DeepSeek’s breakthrough is driving a renewed confidence in China’s AI sector and it will continue to be a key market theme,” analysts at China Securities said in a note.

“It’s challenging the prevailing notion that China lags several years behind US competitors in the AI race, and the sector could chart its own course in a revaluation despite global volatility,” they added.

Around the region, MSCI’s Asia ex-Japan stock index was firmer by 0.25% while Japan’s Nikkei index was up 0.43%.