On February 16, the eve of the Lunar New Year, Hong Kong stocks experienced a half-day trading session. The three major indices collectively opened lower but rebounded higher, with the Hang Seng Tech Index successfully turning positive after dropping nearly 2% at one point during the trading session.
According to Zhitong Finance APP, on February 16th, the eve of the Lunar New Year, the Hong Kong stock market had a half-day trading session. The three major indices opened lower but closed higher. The Hang Seng Tech Index successfully turned positive after falling nearly 2% during the session. At the close, the Hang Seng Index rose by 0.52%, or 138.82 points, to 26,705.94 points, with a total daily turnover of HKD 84.997 billion. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index rose by 0.42% to 9,070.32 points, and the Hang Seng Technology Index increased by 0.13% to 5,367.52 points. From a full-year perspective in the Year of the Snake, the Hang Seng Index gained more than 32%, the Hang Seng Technology Index rose over 13%, and the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index climbed more than 23%.
Huatai Securities pointed out that current market volatility remains relatively high. This week coincides with the Spring Festival holiday, and key factors influencing the market may come from the US stock market, consumption data during the Spring Festival, and AI-related developments. In the short term, the US stock market may continue to see divergence within the AI sector and exhibit a rotation between high- and low-value stocks, exerting a neutral impact on market sentiment. However, domestic high-frequency consumption data and advancements in AI models have already shown new progress. Overall, the firm recommends balanced asset allocation, with a short-term focus on sectors directly benefiting from AI developments, such as semiconductor hardware (e.g., storage), niche consumer stocks, and electrical equipment.
Performance of Blue-Chip Stocks
Zijin Mining (02899) led the blue-chip gains, closing up 4.67% at HKD 43.52, with a turnover of HKD 1.299 billion, contributing 18.71 points to the Hang Seng Index. A recent Citi research report highlighted that it raised the target price for both Zijin Mining’s A-shares and H-shares by over 30% and upgraded its earnings forecast due to upward revisions in gold and lithium price forecasts as well as increased gold sales volumes. It is expected that the company will gradually increase its dividend payout ratio. Citi’s model assumes a dividend payout rate of 40% starting from 2025. Citi raised the target price for Zijin Mining’s H-shares from HKD 39 to HKD 51.8 (a 32.8% increase) and for its A-shares from CNY 35.5 to CNY 46.6 (a 31.3% increase). The stock was rated “Buy” and remains the top pick in the sector.
Among other blue chips, China Hongqiao (01378) rose 3.92% to HKD 36.6, contributing 7.39 points to the Hang Seng Index; CNOOC (00883) gained 3.71% to HKD 25.14, contributing 22.58 points; HSBC Holdings (00005) fell 1.11% to HKD 134.2, dragging down the Hang Seng Index by 28.39 points; and New Oriental-S (09901) dropped 0.64% to HKD 46.34, reducing the Hang Seng Index by 0.38 points.
In terms of popular sectors,
On the market, technology stocks saw mixed performances. Alibaba fell 0.45%, Baidu rose over 1%, and Tencent gained 0.19%. The price rally in memory chips intensified, with Montage Technology and GigaDevice Semiconductor hitting new all-time highs since listing. Major AI models were actively competing during the Spring Festival period, with MINIMAX and Zhipu AI achieving new milestones. Non-ferrous metal stocks performed strongly across the board, with Luoyang Molybdenum set to join the blue-chip index next month, surging over 6%. Oil stocks, shipping stocks, and gaming stocks also showed strong activity. On the other hand, catering, film, and Chinese brokerage stocks faced widespread pressure.
1. Memory concept stocks led gains. By the close, Montage Technology (06809) surged 14.05% to HKD 211, while GigaDevice Semiconductor (03986) rose 9.78% to HKD 406.2.
The price surge in memory chips continued to intensify, with the price increases reflected in the capital markets. According to the latest news, Japanese memory giant Kioxia expects its revised pricing policy for North American clients to take effect starting from the first quarter of 2026, with an average selling price (ASP) anticipated to increase by approximately 50% quarter-over-quarter. Morgan Stanley estimates that Kioxia’s adjusted gross margin for the first quarter will reach 66%. Analysts noted that Kioxia’s price hike sends a positive signal to the entire NAND industry, significantly improving the profitability of the memory chip sector. Goldman Sachs projects that Samsung Electronics’ NAND business operating profit margin will rise sharply to 37% in the first quarter of 2026, while SK Hynix’s will soar to 42%.
2. The ‘two giants’ of large AI models hit new highs again. By the close, MINIMAX (00100) surged 24.56% to HKD 847, and Zhipu AI (02513) rose 4.74% to HKD 508.
On February 11, Zhipu AI launched its new flagship model GLM-5. Internal evaluations show that its performance in front-end, back-end, and other programming development scenarios improved by over 20% compared to the previous generation. Meanwhile, Zhipu announced a price increase for its AI programming subscription package GLM Coding Plan, with overall price hikes starting at 30%. Additionally, MiniMax launched its latest flagship programming model, MiniMax M2.5, on February 12, which is the world’s first production-grade model natively designed for Agent scenarios, supporting full-stack programming development across PC, App, and cross-platform applications. Notably, DeepSeek V4 is expected to debut during the Spring Festival, with tech giants like ByteDance and Alibaba releasing new models or applications during the “Spring Festival season.” Guosen Securities recommends focusing on companies with the most predictable computing power and large AI models.
3. Non-ferrous metal stocks generally rose. By the close of trading, Luoyang Molybdenum (03993) was up 6.35%, at HKD 23.1; China Nonferrous Metals Mining (01258) rose 5.55%, to HKD 15.22; Lingbao Gold (03330) gained 4.8%, at HKD 24.9; Zijin Mining (02899) climbed 4.67%, to HKD 43.52.
According to a report released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. January CPI year-on-year dropped to 2.4%, which is lower than expected, while core CPI year-on-year fell to 2.5%, hitting its lowest level since 2021. Following the release of the data, traders’ expectations for Federal Reserve rate cuts rapidly intensified. The cumulative rate cut anticipated by traders for this year rose from 58 basis points on Thursday to 63 basis points, implying a 50% probability of three rate cuts before the end of the year. Goldman Sachs interpreted that the CPI data did not turn out as strong as the market feared, and the Fed’s path toward “normalization” rate cuts seems clearer. It is projected that the Fed will cut rates twice this year, with the next cut potentially occurring in June.
According to reports from Xinhua News Agency, U.S. media reported on the 15th that President Trump had told Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu that he would support Israel’s airstrike on Iran’s ballistic missile facilities if the U.S. and Iran could not reach an agreement. Earlier reports stated that Trump confirmed on the 13th that the U.S. military would send a second aircraft carrier strike group to the Middle East to pressure Iran into reaching an agreement with the U.S.
4. The results of the Hang Seng Index quarterly review were announced, with active performance in related stocks. By the close of trading, Guofu Quantum (00290) surged 21.15%, to HKD 3.15; Zhonghui Bio-B (02627) rose 10.49%, to HKD 56.9; Laopu Gold (06181) climbed 6.64%, to HKD 787.5; On the downside, Cirrus (02507) dropped 4.98%, to HKD 63.95.
On February 13, Hang Seng Index Company announced the results of the quarterly review of the Hang Seng Index Series through December 31, 2025. All changes will be implemented after the market closes on March 6, 2026, and take effect on March 9, 2026. Among them, CATL, Luoyang Molybdenum, and Laopu Gold will be included as constituents of the Hang Seng Index, increasing the number of constituent stocks from 88 to 90. Additionally, for the Hang Seng Composite Index, Bank of East Asia, Guofu Quantum, Kangchen Pharmaceuticals, CARsgen Therapeutics, Zhonghui Bio, and Cirrus will be added as constituents, while companies like Shui On Properties will be removed, raising the number of constituent stocks from 507 to 532.
Key movers
1. HaiZhi Technology Group (02706) hit a new high again on its second day of listing. By the close of trading, it surged 29.59%, to HKD 120.
Public information shows that HaiZhi Technology is a leading provider of industrial-level artificial intelligence solutions in China, focusing on graph-model fusion technology. It has developed two core product portfolios: Atlas Graph Solutions and Atlas Intelligent Agents. With the gradual promotion of large AI models, HaiZhi Technology’s revenue from de-hallucination services, known as “Atlas Intelligent Agents,” has shown rapid growth in recent years. In 2024, compared to 2023, the growth exceeded nearly 9 times, and in the first half of 2025, the increase was nearly 5 times.
2. Vobile Group (03738) significantly rose. By the close of trading, it was up 8.22%, at HKD 6.32.
Recently, Seedance 2.0, ByteDance’s video generation large model, quietly launched and quickly gained popularity. However, its powerful generative capabilities also sparked copyright controversies. To address this industry pain point, Vobile Group introduced element-level rights management capabilities on its Vobile MAX platform, showcasing real-world cases for the first time. In the examples presented by Vobile, the platform tracked specific hot topics: Taking the character “Judy” from *Zootopia* as an example, Vobile MAX can accurately identify and track AI-generated variant content across the web.
3. COSCO Shipping Energy Transportation (01138) climbed again. By the close of trading, it rose 5.85%, to HKD 17.2.
Guotai Haitong Securities believes that, since 2026, geopolitical tensions have been high, shipowner sentiment has been strong, and some overseas shipowners have increased their chartering to control the market. Recently, oil shipping rates have remained at a high level. It is noted that shipowner sentiment may continue to impact short-term shipping rates. It is recommended to monitor the year-on-year upward trend in freight rate levels, with expectations that oil tanker profitability will increase several-fold year-on-year in Q1 2026.
4. Sands China (01928) opened lower but closed higher. By the end of trading, it rose 2.7%, closing at HKD 19.
On the evening of February 13, Sands China announced its 2025 performance results, with total net revenue reaching USD 7.44 billion, a year-on-year increase of 5.1%; net profit was USD 896 million, a year-on-year decrease of 14.3%; and adjusted property EBITDA amounted to USD 2.31 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 0.7%. Earnings per share were 11.08 US cents, with a final dividend of HKD 0.50 per share, representing a year-on-year increase of 100%.
