KUALA LUMPUR (May 6): Tesla Inc became the most popular choice of stock among Malaysia on social trading platform eToro, with a 19% increase in April, pushing the stock from fourth to first place.

Yesterday, Tesla closed 0.92% or US$7.02 higher at US$768.21.

In a statement, eToro said Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) remained a popular stock in April with a 114% increase in trading.

eToro said investors realised that amid the stay-at-home economy, there would be a surge in demand for the company’s central processing units (CPUs) and graphics processing units (GPUs) used in laptops and data centres.

Commenting on the trading pattern, eToro said while no company is immune from an economic downturn, technology companies seem less vulnerable to the pandemic and economic situation.

It said this was reflected in the new data from investment platform eToro, which shows that nine out of the top 10 invested stocks by Malaysians were technology companies last month.

eToro senior market analyst Nemo Qin said during an economic downturn, investors prefer to invest in consumer staples or dividend aristocrats than other sectors.

However, he said, it seems that the interest in the technology sector has not only remained, but technology stocks have increased in popularity among investors during the pandemic.

“I believe that the popularity and high demand for technology investment will remain for the rest of the year,” he said.

Qin highlighted that there are a few reasons why technology stocks are popular among investors, such as these companies have successful business models or healthy financial status that allow them to continue supporting company development and business operations.

“Another reason is, people are spending more time on technology products, be it using streaming services, e-commerce, video games, online fitness, e-learning and working from home – and many technology companies, such as Netflix and Zoom, are recognising these trends and seizing the opportunity to generate more income and revenue,” he said.