Markets worldwide are rocky and generally sharply down in recent months. So why is the Shanghai A-share index up 17.4 percent so far this year?

The answer might seem obvious: China is holding up well amid global economic recession.

But some economists see a different answer. They say business owners receiving stimulus loans to revive flagging business are turning around and investing in the stock market, leading the turnaround.

Jing Ulrich of JPMorgan mentioned this hypothesis in a research report a few moments ago.

The A-share market's out-performance, combined with a surge in new brokerage account openings (484,510 added last week) has also fueled concerns that new bank loans are finding their way into the equity market. However, most of the new loans are likely to have gone into the real economy. Chinese corporates historically experience high cash requirements around the Chinese New Year period (Jan-Feb) due to salary, interest and tax obligations, which increases their need for short-term borrowing.

She said that despite the Shanghai market’s rise so far this year, shares on the Hong Kong market represent a better value.