A lossmaking Chinese chemical manufacturer has seen its stock price soar due partly to its resemblance with a fictional company that features as an acquisition target in a popular television soap opera.

一家亏损的中国化工企业股价突然大涨，部分原因是其名称跟一部热播电视剧中作为被收购目标的虚构公司相像。

Shares in Shanghai-listed Guizhou Redstar Developing Co rose by the maximum 10 per cent daily limit for a third consecutive trading session on Tuesday, a testament to the speculative zeal of Chinese retail investors. Its shares remained suspended on Wednesday and Thursday.

本周二，在上海上市的贵州红星发展有限公司(Guizhou Redstar Developing Co)的股价连续第三个交易日涨停，证明了中国散户投资者的投机热情之盛。周三和周四，这只股票继续停牌。

Retail speculators were a major force behind the boom-bust cycle that rocked China’s stock market last year, during which the main index gained 60 per cent through the first roughly five months of the year before falling by 45 per cent in the subsequent nine weeks. By some estimates, retail investors account for 80 per cent of total trading volume.

散户投机者是中国股市荣衰周期背后的主要力量。去年，中国股市大起大落，上证综指先是在前5个月里暴涨60%，然后又在接下来的9周里大跌45%。根据某些估算，散户投资者占到股市总交易量的80%。

“Ode to joy”, which premiered on Shanghai-based Dragon TV last month, is something like a Chinese version of “Big Bang Theory” or “Friends”. The show centres around a group of young professional women sharing the same floor of a Shanghai apartment building. A recent storyline feature Andy, a brilliant investor who has returned to Shanghai after working on Wall Street, targeting a fictional company called Redstar Group for acquisition.

上月在上海卫视(Dragon TV)首播的《欢乐颂》(Ode to joy)有点像中国版的《生活大爆炸》(Big Bang Theory)或者《老友记》(Friends)。该剧是围绕一群合租上海某一公寓的年轻专业女性展开的。在最近的情节中，一名才华横溢的投资者人安迪(Andy)在华尔街(Wall Street)工作后返回上海，把一家名为红星集团(Redstar Group)的虚构公司作为收购对象。

“You should fully consider Redstar's technological capabilities, especially in the area of 3D multimedia,” she tells employees crafting a takeover plan in episode 37.

“你们应该充分考虑红星的技术能力，尤其是在3D多媒体领域的技术能力，”她在第3集里告诉正草拟一份收购方案的员工们。

The real-life Redstar “primarily provides barium carbonate, strontium carbonate, barium hydroxide, strontium nitrate, strontium chloride, high purity manganese sulphate and sulphur byproducts”, according to its official business description.

现实生活中的红星发展的官方业务介绍称，其“主要提供碳酸钡、碳酸锶、氢氧化钡、硝酸锶、氯化锶、高纯度硫酸锰和硫磺副产品”。

Guizhou Redstar's shares have also benefited from rumours in local media that Hong Kong-listed Wanda Commercial Properties was eyeing the company for use as a shell for a backdoor listing on the mainland.

红星发展的股价也得益于中国媒体的传闻：在香港上市的万达商业地产(Wanda Commercial Properties)打算借壳该公司在内地上市。

In a filing after market close on Tuesday, Guizhou Redstar, which posted a net loss of Rmb190m last year, denied those rumours, saying that neither the company nor its shareholders were in discussions with Wanda. “The company . . . reminds investors to pay attention to investment risk,” it said, noting that Redstar's price/earnings ratio had reached 434.

周二收市后，去年录得1.9亿元人民币亏损的红星发展发布公告，澄清了这些传闻。该公司表示，公司或公司股东都没有与万达商业地产进行谈判。公告称，“公司……提醒广大投资者注意投资风险”，并指出，公司的市盈率已高达434倍。

So-called “concept stocks” — shares linked to popular investment themes used to drive interest from retail investors — played a key role in last year’s bubble and have a long history in China.

所谓“概念股”——即与某些热门投资题材联系在一起、旨在吸引散户投资者购买的股票——在去年的股市泡沫中扮演了关键角色，并且在中国有着长久的历史。

Small-cap companies are favoured targets for speculators because a relatively small amount of investment can produce sharp price movements. Some 53m shares of Redstar changed hands on Tuesday, the biggest day since the stock debuted in 2001.

小市值公司是投机者们青睐的目标，因为相对较少的资金便可以推动其股价发生剧烈变动。周二，大约5300万股红星发展股票易手，是2001年上市以来交易量最高的一天。

On November 7 2012, following US President Barack Obama’s re-election, shares in refrigerator manufacturer Aucma Co, whose Chinese name resembles the official transliteration of “Obama”, saw its shares spike 4 per cent in afternoon trade.

2012年11月7日，在美国总统巴拉克•奥巴马(Barack Obama)获得连任之后，冰箱制造商澳柯玛(Aucma Co)因其名称与“Obama”的官方音译相近，而发现股价在下午交易中大涨4%。