Market participants are concerned that AI models developed by Alphabet (GOOGL.US) and Anthropic may pose a threat to the survival space of the software industry. U.S. software stocks came under pressure, while Hong Kong shares exhibited volatility. The Hang Seng Index opened 37 points lower, initially falling by as much as 241 points to reach an intraday low of 26,593 points. In the afternoon session, it rebounded, rising by 169 points to hit a high of 27,004 points. At the close, it gained 12 points or 0.05%, settling at 26,847 points. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index declined by 4 points or 0.05% to close at 9,048 points, while the Hang Seng Tech Index fell by 100 points or 1.8%, ending at 5,366 points. Total daily turnover on the market dropped to HKD 285.433 billion.
Software and internet application sectors suffered losses, with Tencent (00700.HK), NetEase (09999.HK), Baidu (09888.HK), and Bilibili (09626.HK) declining between 3% and 4%. Meitu (01357.HK) and XD Inc. (02400.HK) plunged 11.4% and 7.6%, respectively. Travel platforms Tongcheng (00780.HK) and Trip.com (09961.HK) fell 5.7% and 6.1%, respectively. Kingdee (00268.HK) and Weimob (02013.HK) dropped 12.6% and 8.3%, respectively, while China Software International (00354.HK), Kingsoft Software (03888.HK), and Kingsoft Cloud (03896.HK) declined between 5.1% and 6.7%. Amid expectations that AI will write its own code, AI-related stocks were also impacted. Unisound (09678.HK) and MINIMAX (00100.HK) fell over 8%, while Paradigm Intelligence (06682.HK) and Zhipu AI (02513.HK) dropped 4.6% and 6.6%, respectively.
In other technology stocks, Kuaishou (01024.HK), Alibaba (09988.HK), and JD.com (09618.HK) fell between 0.4% and 1.1%, while Meituan (03690.HK) declined 1.6%. Semiconductor stock SMIC (00981.HK) dropped 2.4%, while Hua Hong (01347.HK) and Novosense (02676.HK) fell 4.9% and 6.7%, respectively. Mobile component makers Cowell (01415.HK), Q Technology (01478.HK), and Lens Technology (06613.HK) declined between 3.7% and 4.7%. Optical fiber cable producer Yangtze Optical Fibre and Cable (06869.HK) retreated 2.5%.
Precious metals prices continued to rebound, with China Gold International (02099.HK) and Zhaojin Mining (01818.HK) rising 2.4% and 1.3%, respectively. Meanwhile, China Silver Group (00815.HK) fell 1.5%. Resource stock MMG Ltd. (01208.HK) climbed 5.1%, and Luoyang Molybdenum (0399.HK) increased 2.5%. Following mainland China's upward adjustment of refined oil prices and reports of the U.S. shooting down an Iranian drone, oil stocks such as Sinopec (00386.HK), PetroChina (00857.HK), and CNOOC (00883.HK) rose between 1.4% and 2.3%. Coal stock Yanzhou Energy (01171.HK) surged 10.6% after announcing the listing transfer of Xintai Coal for a top bid of RMB 3.05 billion. Amid a new round of cold weather in mainland China, peer Shougang Resources (00639.HK) and China Shenhua (01088.HK) rose over 5%, while China Coal Energy (01898.HK) surged 8%.
In the automotive sector, BYD (01211.HK) closed flat at HKD 90, while Xiaomi (01810.HK) and Nio (09866.HK) fell 1.9% and 2%, respectively. Li Auto (02015.HK) and Leapmotor (09863.HK) rose 3.4% and 2.9%, respectively. Lithium stock Ganfeng Lithium (01772.HK) dropped 4%, and auto parts maker Sanhua (02050.HK) declined 4%. Pharmaceutical stock CSPC (01093.HK) fell 2%, while Innovent Bio (01801.HK) and BeiGene (06160.HK) rose 2.3% and 2.8%, respectively.
Among financial stocks, HSBC (00005.HK) rose 0.1%, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (00388.HK) fell 0.4%, and AIA Group (01299.HK) gained 1.4%. The SSE Composite Index reclaimed the 4,100-point level, with brokerages Guotai Junan (02611.HK), CICC (03908.HK), and Huatai Securities (06886.HK) rising over 3%. Real estate stocks Yue Xiu Property (00123.HK), China Jinmao (00817.HK), Vanke (02202.HK), and China Resources Land (01109.HK) rose between 5.4% and 6.2%, while Future Land Development (01030.HK) and Sunac (01918.HK) surged 10.2% and 8.8%, respectively. China Overseas Land & Investment (00688.HK) and Greentown China (03900.HK) rose 3.9% and 4.5%, respectively.
In other stocks, airline companies Air China (00753.HK), China Southern Airlines (01055.HK), and China Eastern Airlines (00670.HK) rose between 5.6% and 6.7%. Exporter Techtronic Industries (00669.HK) climbed 5.3%, while Xinyi Glass (00868.HK) gained 5.9%.
