- On April 16, driven by the marginal easing of geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and the better-than-expected performance of large tech stocks, the Hong Kong equities market showed a significant upward trend. The Hang Seng Tech Index (HSTECH) rose by 3.67%, recapturing the 5,000-point mark; the Hang Seng Index (HSI) climbed 1.72% to 26,394 points, and the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index (HSCEI) recorded a gain of 2.14%.
- The energy storage and semiconductor sectors performed prominently. Newly listed Sigenergy soared by over 103% on its first trading day, while CATL rose 9% to reach a record high since listing. In the artificial intelligence computing chain, Iluvatar CoreX's market value surpassed HKD 100 billion, and Biren Technology rose by over 26%.
- Southbound funds recorded a net inflow of HKD 4.291 billion for the entire day, with the Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect and Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect contributing HKD 3.507 billion and HKD 785 million respectively, indicating a marginal increase in domestic institutional investors' willingness to allocate core Hong Kong stocks at the current valuation level.
Revaluation of Tech Heavyweights and Computing Power Pricing
The core momentum behind the recent uptrend in the Hang Seng Index mainly comes from the significant tech heavyweights. Against the backdrop of accelerated commercialization of artificial intelligence, large internet platforms have shown strong performance resilience. Baidu Group (9888:HK) rose by 7.69%, Alibaba Group (9988:HK) recorded a gain of 5.6%, while Tencent Holdings (0700:HK) and Meituan (3690:HK) climbed nearly 4% and 3% respectively. The valuation expansion of tech stocks is not only supported by fundamental data but is also closely related to the overall price increase of underlying computing power services. Alibaba Cloud announced a price increase of 2% to 7% for certain model units of its large model service platform, Pailian, sending a signal to the market of a persistently tight supply-demand relationship in computing power. If the trend of price hikes in computing power services becomes established across the industry, relevant cloud service providers are likely to see a boost in their profit margins over the next few quarters.
Liquidity Premium of New Energy Storage Sector
Outside the tech sector, the energy storage and lithium battery industrial chain also recorded excess gains. This trend was particularly evident in the pricing of newly listed companies. Sigenergy achieved an oversubscription of 1,102.05 times during its public offering phase, with an international placement portion reaching a subscription multiple of 31.2 times. The gain of over 103% on its first day reflects the market's full recognition of the liquidity premium of high-tech barrier energy storage assets. Meanwhile, industry leader CATL recorded a 9% gain, with Lonking Technology (2465:HK) and Ecostech International (0842:HK) rising nearly 23% and 9% respectively. The overall strength of the energy storage sector indicates that capital markets are turning capacity expansion overseas and global energy transition expectations into substantive long positions.
