AI fever propels stocks to three-year high

Agencies and staff reporter

Hong Kong stocks briefly jumped over 900 points yesterday, hitting a three-year high as the tech rally resumed amid artificial intelligence fever.

The benchmark Hang Seng Index closed at 23,787 points, 753 points or 3.27 percent higher, with a main board turnover of HK$370.13 billion.

The Hang Seng Tech Index hit a high of 6,023 points but finished at 5,953, still up around 4.4 percent while the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index rose 293 points or 3.45 percent to 8,792.

Tech stocks led the rally. Tencent (0700) was up 3.44 percent, Alibaba (9988) rose 4.8 percent, Meituan (3690) jumped 9.8 percent, Xiaomi (1810) closed 5.8 percent higher at a record HK$56.30, JD.com (9618) gained 8.4 percent and Kuaishou Technology (1024) rose 3.9 percent.

Shares in Budweiser Brewing Company APAC (1876) closed 10.4 percent up, following the company's announcements for earnings and management change.

The beer maker reported a 14.8 percent year-on-year decline in net profit last year to US$726 million (HK$5.66 billion), but raised its final dividend by 7 percent to 5.66 US cents per share.

Mainland property stocks performed well following reports that China is considering to inject at least 400 billion yuan (HK$428.82 billion) in fresh capital into several major banks.

Shimao (0813) surged as much as 34.8 percent before closing 25.8 percent higher. Longfor (0960) rose 10.6 percent to close at HK$11.20, making it the top gainer among blue chips, while China Overseas Land & Investment (0688) gained 7.7 percent.

Local developers also saw gains, with New World Development (0017) up over 6.4 percent and Hang Lung Properties (0101) rising 3.7 percent.

Oil stocks bucked the trend, pressured by disappointing US economic data and concerns over the uncertain outlook for crude demand. PetroChina (0857) slipped 0.51 percent, CNOOC (0883) declined 1.2 percent and China Petroleum and Chemical (0386) dropped 0.4 percent.

In the mainland, the Shanghai Composite Index closed at 3,380, up 34 points or 1.02 percent, while the Shenzhen Component Index finished at 10,955, rising 101 points or 0.9 percent.

The yuan strengthened to 7.2547 per US dollar, rising 94 pips from the previous session. Meanwhile, the mid-price dropped to a one-month low of 7.1732 per US dollar, diverging from market forecasts by nearly 800 pips.

Traders said tariff uncertainties have resurfaced as a key market concern, while US economic data could add to the uncertainty over future policy moves, leaving the US dollar's outlook more volatile.