(Bloomberg) -- Hermes Li’s Aspex Management (HK) Ltd. scored a more than 11% first-quarter gain in its Asia hedge fund, one of the largest in the region, said people with knowledge of the matter.

Unlike some of its peers that piled into artificial intelligence-related trades to achieve outsized gains, Aspex made money from a broad range of countries and industries, including bearish wagers, said one of the people, who asked not to be identified discussing private information. The fund had just over $7 billion as of Dec. 31.

Bonnie Fong, chief operating officer of the Hong Kong-based firm, didn’t respond to a request for comment.

The average Asia-focused hedge fund ended the first quarter on a positive note as Beijing moved to stabilize its economy and markets, helping to lift Chinese stocks after the MSCI China Index slumped another 31% in the 12 months through January. A rally in Japan led by large stocks started to lose steam in March, benefiting some funds running tightly balanced bullish and bearish wagers. 

Aspex’s first-quarter gain was almost four times the 3% return of the average regional peer, according to data from Eurekahedge Pte. The fund’s strongest return in the three months came in March, when it surged nearly 8%, said the people.

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