Tech stocks lead Hong Kong decline, ending 6-day winning streak

JD.com, Bilibili, NetEase and Alibaba lose ground while New Oriental Education & Technology plunges on weak earnings

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Pedestrians cross a street near an electronic billboard showing China’s 2024 GDP growth in Shanghai on January 21, 2025. Photo: Reuters

Published: 10:22am, 22 Jan 2025Updated: 4:34pm, 22 Jan 2025

Hong Kong stocks fell, snapping a six-day winning streak on broad losses among technology companies as the US unveiled a major artificial intelligence (AI) initiative.

The Hang Seng Index fell 1.6 per cent to 19,778.77 at the close, while the Hang Seng Tech Index lost 2.4 per cent. On the mainland, the CSI 300 Index dropped 0.9 per cent, and the Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.9 per cent.

E-commerce giant JD.com plunged 4.3 per cent to HK$151.60, while video-sharing platform Bilibili dropped 6.4 per cent to HK$129.20. Alibaba Group Holding slid 3.1 per cent to HK$82.20, gaming firm NetEase fell 1.7 per cent to HK$154.80 and Tencent Holdings dropped 1 per cent to HK$383.40.

New Oriental Education & Technology plunged 24.2 per cent to HK$35.40 after second-quarter earnings fell short of analyst expectations. The company reported adjusted earnings of US$0.22 per American depository share for the second quarter on Tuesday, missing the consensus estimate of US$0.32.

US President Donald Trump announced a major private-sector investment aiming to “beat China” in AI on Tuesday. The joint venture, called Stargate, would see tech companies OpenAI, SoftBank and Oracle initially invest a combined US$100 billion to build data centres. The funding could expand to US$500 billion over the next four years, according to the announcement.

Stocks of domestic, service-oriented companies serving everyday needs in China are preferred picks to mitigate the volatility coming from short-term declines, according to Kai Wang, a senior equity analyst for Asia at Morningstar.