Week in Review
- Asian equities were mixed for the week as Korea and Pakistan outperformed while Hong Kong and Mainland China underperformed.
- It was a busy week for internet earnings, as we had Q3 earnings releases from Trip.com, which beat expectations, Kuaishou, which beat expectations, fintech Qifu Technology, which beat, and PDD, which missed, among others.
- China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) encouraged solar panel manufacturers to cut excess after the Ministry of Finance (MOF) reduced the tax rebate for exports of solar panels, moves to lower other countries’ trade deficits with China in preparation for potential trade negotiations with the US, especially with an incoming Trump Administration, European Union members, and Brazil.
- Alibaba had some interesting corporate news this week as the company announced it will be merging its international and domestic E-Commerce businesses into one unit and issuing more bonds, denominated in both USD and CNY, to fund both share repurchases and investment.
- Join Xiabing Su as she explores the China 2024 Import Expo in our latest video.
Key News
Asian equity markets were mixed overnight on the perception of heightened geopolitical risks in Eastern Europe and the Middle East, as well as US dollar strength. China markets were not spared as Mainland China bared the brunt of the downdraft while Hong Kong held up slightly better.
Online real estate platform KE Holdings reported Q3 earnings overnight. The company’s revenue missed slightly while its net profit beat estimates. The company reported Q3 revenue of RMB 22.59 billion earnings per share (EPS) of RMB 1.53. New home transactions jumped +18% year-over-year (YoY) in the third quarter, which is positive for China’s real estate sector. The platform had been focusing on its home decoration services recently amid the slump in the market. So, to see profit increase alongside new home transactions is a truly positive sign for the market overall.
Alibaba announced yesterday that it would be combining its domestic and international E-Commerce units into one. This is an interesting move that reverses one component of the restructuring the company carried out last year. International commerce is growing faster than domestic due to the company’s aggressive expansion into new markets and its deployment of one of the most advanced AI sourcing bots. This could also be a motivation, i.e. making sure analysts do not miss the stellar growth in international digital commerce (AIDC).
Regarding the move, Alibaba’s CEO Eddie Wu said: “The business model of e-commerce both in China and globally has evolved into the next phase where integrated capabilities in global supply chains, fulfillment and the ability to provide services to consumers will dictate competitive success. The Alibaba E-commerce Business Group will integrate all our e-commerce resources and harness core capabilities accumulated over the years to satisfy the needs of consumers in China and worldwide.”
Mainland investors bought a net $328 million worth of Hong Kong-listed stocks and ETFs overnight via Southbound Stock Connect. This is the seventh straight session of net buying. Mainland investors continued to buy dips in Hong Kong. What do they know? Perhaps they are optimistic about Trump making another trade deal with China.
The Hang Seng and Hang Seng Tech indexes both closed lower by -1.89% and -2.57%, respectively, on volume that increased +32% from yesterday. The top-performing sectors were Information Technology, which gained +0.33%, Energy, which fell -1.67%, and Utilities, which fell -1.71%. Meanwhile, the worst-performing sectors were Real Estate, which fell -3.81%, Materials, which fell -3.03%, and Consumer Discretionary, which fell -2.84%.
Shanghai, Shenzhen, and the STAR Board all closed lower by -3.06%, -3.54%, and -4.16%, respectively, on volume that increased by +11% from yesterday. The top-performing sectors were Utilities, which fell -2.37%, Consumer Discretionary, which fell -2.67%, and Energy, which fell -2.75%. Meanwhile, the worst-performing sectors were Health Care, which fell -3.78%, Information Technology, which fell -3.75%, and Financials, which fell -3.47%.
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Last Night’s Performance
Last Night’s Exchange Rates, Prices, & Yields
- CNY per USD 7.25 versus 7.24 yesterday
- CNY per EUR 7.55 versus 7.59 yesterday
- Yield on 10-Year Government Bond 2.08% versus 2.08% yesterday
- Yield on 10-Year China Development Bank Bond 2.15% versus 2.15% yesterday
- Copper Price -0.20%
- Steel Price +0.48%