PBOC warns of 'Niu' stock frenzy as even 'The Odyssey' gets a bull-themed remake

The People's Bank of China’s supervised and backed daily financial newspaper, Financial News, warned investors about speculative "Niu"-character stock spikes after the Chinese animated film Niu Lai went viral for its terrible low-budget animation.

The article published on Tuesday noted that stocks with flimsy links to hot themes often see brief speculative spikes, and latecomers end up bearing the brunt when the frenzy fades. It pointed to the sudden rally among A shares with the “Niu” character, such as Luo Niu Shan, Hebei Jinniu Chemical Industry, and Beijing Topnew Info, highlighting that the increases in their share prices are not related to their operations.

The report said investors should not equate internet buzzwords with real investment logic, because such speculative manias share common traits – flimsy pretexts, weak underlying logic, and money flowing in and out rapidly.

As of August 18, Niu Lai's box office has surpassed 20 million yuan (HK$23.26 million). Many audiences are aware of the film's poor production quality, but still willingly bought tickets to watch it, making it a cultural ritual. Maoyan Pro data predicts that Niu Lai's total mainland box office will ultimately reach up to 135 million yuan, as the viewing craze from curiosity and irony has continually boosted the film's commercial potential.

The Niu Lai meme has also spread to cultural and tourism promotions. The Dongguan Municipal People's Government Information Office and Guangdong Province’s official Weibo account, Dongguan Release, recently released a short video titled E Lai, which means "goose comes," mimicking Niu Lai and ending with the tagline "Eat roast goose, come to Dongguan" to promote local food and tourism. 

Other adaptations follow, including Ma Li (“horse comes”), Gou Lai (“dog comes”), Xiong Lai (“bear comes”), and Lü Lai (“donkey comes”). The Hollywood film The Odyssey was also named Ao Niu (“Odyseey Bull”), which garnered tens of thousands of likes. Some Douyin merchants also launched plush toys “ugly bull”, attracting over 7,000 orders, and the product is currently being sold on a pre-order basis.

However, legal experts said unauthorized adaptations of film footage may carry copyright infringement risks.

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