Weekly | A Rough Start to 2025 for HSI!
This week, the Hong Kong stock market wrapped up 2024 with a strong finish. The $HSI(HSI)$ rose over 17% for the year, breaking a four-year streak of losses.
However, 2025 kicked off on a sour note. On the first trading day, the HSI plummeted by 2.18%, marking the worst start in five years.
Economic News: Manufacturing PMI Slips
Data from China’s National Bureau of Statistics revealed that the manufacturing PMI for December stood at 50.1%, down 0.2 percentage points from the previous month. While still indicating expansion, it fell short of expectations.
Additionally, the Caixin PMI for December, released on Thursday, came in at 50.5, dropping 1.0 percentage point from November and significantly below analysts' forecasts of 51.7.
With China’s annual "Two Sessions" in March approaching, there’s a policy vacuum, and A-shares have fallen sharply for three consecutive days. Investor sentiment is shrinking, which is putting more pressure on the Hong Kong market.
This week, most sectors saw declines, with only a few rising:
Despite the downturn, southbound funds kept flowing in, with a net purchase of HK $29.6 billion.
Major Events in Hong Kong Stocks This Week
1. New IPOs like $BRAINAURORA-B(06681)$ 、 $BLOKS(00325)$ and $NUMANS(02530)$ were in the spotlight, with $BLOKS(00325)$ oversubscribed by over 4,300 times.
2. In 2024, Hong Kong companies bought back over HK $263.4 billion worth of shares, a 108% year-on-year increase.
3. The $HSI(HSI)$ finished 2024 up by over 17%, ending a four-year losing streak.
4. The December PMI remained in the expansion zone at 50.1%.
5. $XIAOMI-W(01810)$ ’s goal for 2025 is to deliver 300,000 electric vehicles.
6. $XPENG-W(09868)$ CEO He Xiaopeng warned that the EV price war could kick off as early as January 2025.
7. $BYD COMPANY(01211)$ ’s 2024 total sales hit 4.27 million units, up 41.26% year-on-year.
8. $BABA-W(09988)$ sold its entire stake in $SUNART RETAIL(06808)$.
9. The December sales reports for $NIO-SW(09866)$ $XPENG-W(09868)$ $LI AUTO-W(02015)$ showed record-breaking results.
10. The People’s Bank of China launched a 550 billion yuan liquidity swap.
11. The National Development and Reform Commission announced a new subsidy for digital products like smartphones.
12. $XIAOMI-W(01810)$ 's stock hit a historic high!
Four Stocks Worth Attention Among Top Trading HK Stocks This Week
Top 1: $XIAOMI-W(01810)$ . The company’s founder Lei Jun hosted a year-end live broadcast at the company's EV factory, revealing that they delivered over 130,000 electric vehicles in 2023, with a target of 300,000 for 2025. Xiaomi’s stock hit a new all-time high!
Top 5: $BABA-W(09988)$ . Alibaba announced it was selling its entire stake in $SUNART RETAIL(06808)$ to focus on core business and improve shareholder returns. The stock saw a slight increase.
Top 6: $SMOORE INTL(06969)$ . Smoore announced stock options for its key management team, linked to the company’s market value, similar to $Tesla Motors(TSLA)$ ’s approach. This drove the stock price up.
Top 8: $UBTECH ROBOTICS(09880)$ . UBTECH’s stock crashed after the company’s chairman and CEO, Zhou Jian, terminated agreements with several stakeholders, ending their joint action.
Next Week's Hong Kong Stock Market Events
1. Next Thursday, US markets will be closed for a holiday; the Federal Reserve’s FOMC meeting minutes will be released.
2. Next Friday, China’s central bank will announce December financial data, including M2, new RMB loans, and social financing.
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