Hong Kong stocks close (07.04) | Hang Seng Index falls 0.64%, dropping below 24,000; innovative drug and photovoltaic stocks rise, with Alibaba Health leading the blue-chip decline

According to Zhitong Finance APP, Hong Kong stocks opened lower this morning and fell further, with the Hang Seng Index falling below the 24,000 mark; in the afternoon, the three major indices collectively rose, with the National Index and Hang Seng Tech Index briefly turning positive. By the close, the Hang Seng Index fell 0.64% or 153.88 points, closing at 23,916.06 points, with a total turnover of HKD 26.7808 billion; the Hang Seng National Enterprises Index fell 0.45%, closing at 8,609.27 points; the Hang Seng Technology Index fell 0.33%, closing at 5,216.26 points. For the week, the Hang Seng Index fell a cumulative 1.52%, the National Index fell a cumulative 1.75%, and the Hang Seng Tech Index fell a cumulative 2.34%.

Jianyin International pointed out that with the expiration of the tariff deferral measures for other trading partners by the United States on July 9, global market uncertainty is expected to increase further. The recent strong performance of brokerage stocks is mainly driven by sentiment and expectations for the issuance of virtual asset licenses, which appears to be more of a temporary bull market illusion, as the market seems overly optimistic about interest rate cuts in July and the situation in the Middle East. Although we maintain an optimistic judgment that Hong Kong stocks have the potential to enter a bull market in the second half of the year, in the short term, the market lacks catalysts to quickly initiate a bull market trend.

Blue Chip Performance

Ali Health (00241) led the decline among blue chips. By the close, it fell 6.64%, closing at HKD 4.22, with a turnover of HKD 2.166 billion, dragging down the Hang Seng Index by 3.04 points. Alibaba recently announced that it has completed the pricing of zero-coupon exchangeable bonds with a total principal amount of HKD 12 billion, maturing in 2032. These bonds will reference its subsidiary Ali Health, in which it holds approximately 64% of the shares, as the exchange target, with an initial exchange ratio of 160,500 shares of Ali Health for every HKD 1 million, equivalent to an initial exchange price of HKD 6.23 per share, a premium of 48% over the hedged placement price of HKD 4.21.

In other blue chip stocks, Xinyi Solar (00968) rose 4.73%, closing at HKD 2.88, contributing 0.91 points to the Hang Seng Index; Sino Biopharmaceutical (01177) rose 2.75%, closing at HKD 5.6, contributing 2.45 points to the Hang Seng Index; AIA (01299) fell 4.42%, closing at HKD 69.15, dragging down the Hang Seng Index by 53.96 points; Techtronic Industries (00669) fell 3.11%, closing at HKD 85.8, dragging down the Hang Seng Index by 6.35 points.

Popular Sectors

On the market, large technology stocks showed mixed performance, with Alibaba and Xiaomi both falling over 1%, while Baidu rose 1.48%. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has called for the orderly exit of backward production capacity, leading to a general rise in photovoltaic stocks; multiple policies have been introduced to support the development of innovative drugs, resulting in a resurgence of strength in pharmaceutical stocks; the popularity of stablecoins continues, with Guotai Junan International rising over 10%; semiconductor, brokerage, and domestic bank stocks also rose; in addition, brain-computer interface concept stocks surged and then retreated, with Nanjing Panda Electronics closing up 1.35%. On the other hand, strong U.S. non-farm payroll data has dampened interest rate cut expectations, leading to weak performance in gold stocks; Apple concept, automotive, and airline stocks were all in the red.

1. Some pharmaceutical stocks regained strength. By the close, Rongchang Bio (09995) rose 15.01%, closing at HKD 67.8; CStone Pharmaceuticals-B (02616) rose 13.07%, closing at HKD 5.19; Kintor Pharmaceutical (09926) rose 9.43%, closing at HKD 116.1; Yiming Oncology-B (01541) rose 3.94%, closing at HKD 12.66 The National Healthcare Security Administration and the National Health Commission recently issued "Several Measures to Support the High-Quality Development of Innovative Drugs," proposing 16 measures from five aspects: increasing support for innovative drug research and development, supporting innovative drugs to enter the basic medical insurance drug catalog and the commercial health insurance innovative drug catalog, supporting the clinical application of innovative drugs, improving the multi-payment capability of innovative drugs, and strengthening security measures. Citigroup expects that in the second half of 2025, the innovative drug and biotechnology sector will welcome multiple catalysts, including commercial cooperation, accelerated regulatory approvals, and a favorable pricing environment, and that the incremental payments from commercial insurance to the healthcare system will also promote industry development.

It is worth mentioning that recent media reports indicate that AstraZeneca is in talks with Summit regarding the cooperation on the AK112 drug, with a cooperation amount as high as $15 billion. AK112 is a PD-1/VEGF bispecific tumor immunotherapy drug independently developed by KANGFANG BIOPHARMACEUTICAL. According to Kaiyuan Securities, as of May 2025, among multinational corporations (MNCs), only Pfizer and Merck have entered this track through introductions, and as data continues to mature and the potential for combined applications is continuously verified, other early-stage PD-(L) 1/VEGF bispecific antibodies in China will also have the opportunity to go abroad. Currently, the market sentiment for the PD-(L) 1/VEGF bispecific antibody track is continuously improving, and related targets are expected to continue benefiting.

2. Photovoltaic stocks generally rose. As of the close, Xinyi Energy (03868) rose 15% to HKD 1.38; JinkoSolar (01108) rose 8.39% to HKD 5.17; GCL-Poly Energy (03800) rose 6.67% to HKD 1.12; Xinyi Solar (00968) rose 4.73% to HKD 2.88.

On July 3, Li Lecheng, Secretary of the Party Leadership Group and Minister of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, presided over the fifteenth symposium for manufacturing enterprises, reiterating the guidance for photovoltaic companies to promote the orderly exit of backward production capacity. According to the 21st Century Business Herald, a photovoltaic company executive who attended the symposium disclosed more content and details from the meeting. "The current situation in the photovoltaic industry can no longer rely solely on self-discipline; this time the measures will be 'very strong'." Jiaoyin International Securities pointed out that the policy is intensively being communicated, and the central government has further increased its attention to the current difficulties in the photovoltaic industry, having deeply understood the causes of the difficulties and determined to solve them. Subsequent targeted substantive policies are expected to be introduced, and the photovoltaic supply side will welcome a turnaround.

3. The popularity of stablecoin concepts continues. As of the close, Guotai Junan International (01788) rose 10.62% to HKD 4.27; Victory Securities (08540) rose 9.25% to HKD 6.38; Huaxing Capital Holdings (01911) rose 7.41% to HKD 4.93; Lianyi Rong Technology-W (09959) rose 5.46% to HKD 1.93.

On July 2, Xu Zhengyu, Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury of Hong Kong, stated that the "Stablecoin Ordinance" will take effect on August 1 this year, at which point the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) will begin accepting license applications. Currently, the HKMA is conducting market consultations on the specific guidelines for implementing the ordinance, aiming to establish the guidelines as soon as possible. Previously, Guotai Junan International was approved for virtual asset trading qualifications, becoming the first Hong Kong-based Chinese brokerage to provide comprehensive virtual asset-related trading services KaiYuan Securities believes that stablecoins are entering a "singularity" moment, and the industrial trend has arrived. The application scenarios of stablecoins are expanding from cryptocurrency trading to a broader payment field, with market scale and trading activity rapidly increasing.

4. Gold stocks show weak performance. As of the close, Tongguan Gold (00340) fell 4.59%, closing at HKD 2.08; Chifeng Gold (06693) fell 4.27%, closing at HKD 25.8; China Gold International (02099) fell 2.73%, closing at HKD 71.25; Shandong Gold (01787) fell 0.35%, closing at HKD 28.5.

In June, the seasonally adjusted non-farm payrolls in the U.S. increased by 147,000, better than expected, while the unemployment rate unexpectedly dropped to 4.1%. Traders are no longer betting on a rate cut by the Federal Reserve in July, and the probability of a rate cut in September has also decreased. CITIC Futures believes that in the short term, attention should be paid to changes in trade policy before and after the expiration of the tariff easing period on July 8. If trade frictions do not significantly worsen in the short term, precious metals may lack upward momentum and still need to consolidate. CITIC Construction Investment points out that under the judgment of trade easing and recovery transactions in the second half of the year, the short-term bullishness of gold is not obvious. If combined with events such as a strong global stock market and easing of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, risk appetite may rebound, and a significant pullback in gold prices at historical highs cannot be ruled out.

Popular Active Stocks

1. XPeng Inc. -W (09868) faced pressure throughout the day, closing down 6.56% at HKD 69.1.

On July 3, XPeng launched its new model G7. The new car comes in three models, starting at RMB 195,800, further down from the previous pre-sale price of RMB 235,800. That evening, XPeng posted on Weibo that the G7 sold over 10,000 units in just 9 minutes. It is worth noting that the G7 operates in a highly competitive market. Meanwhile, the Xiaomi YU7, launched at the end of June this year (priced at RMB 253,500 - 329,900), has already received over 200,000 orders.

2. Data center stocks rose, with GDS Holdings Limited -SW (09698) up 6.09%, closing at HKD 32.25; New Oriental Education & Technology Group (01686) up 7.59%, closing at HKD 7.94.

Overnight, NVIDIA rose 1.33%, hitting a record high, with a market capitalization that briefly surpassed USD 3.9 trillion. According to media reports, as NVIDIA's GB200 enters peak production, the next-generation AI server chip GB300 is expected to be launched in the second half of 2025. Guojin Securities is optimistic about the continued growth of global AI computing power demand. The firm believes that with the increase in domestic AI chip supply, the second half of 2025 may welcome a new bidding period for IDC orders, driving the sector upward.

3. Jitu Express -W (01519) performed well, closing up 5.49% at HKD 7.69.

Citi released a research report expressing confidence in Jitu Express's profit growth in 2025, reiterating its "outperform" rating. The firm believes that TikTok Shop's GMV growth in Southeast Asia in the second quarter of 2025 will be strong, driving the recent rise in the stock price. Since Jitu Express handles over 50% of TikTok Shop's parcel volume in Southeast Asia, the firm expects the parcel volume in the region to exceed the management's previous expectation of a 25%-30% increase in the fiscal year 2025 At the same time, maintain stable unit profitability.

4. Bilibili-W (09626) rises against the market, closing up 5.31% at HKD 172.5.

Tianfeng Securities pointed out that "Three Strategies" is gradually evolving into high-quality game content with medium to long-term value. The company expects to continue driving long-term growth in its gaming business by optimizing content and gameplay, as well as expanding game season features. Meanwhile, traditional ACG games such as "FGO" and "Azur Lane" also maintain stable performance. The company stated that "Three Strategies" will expand into international markets later this year, and several new games are also in the planning stages