Hong Kong stocks retreat as regional tech volatility offsets short covering
Zhipu AI bucked the downward trend to surge over 11 per cent as volatility surrounding its recent IPO share unlocking began to ease
Hong Kong stocks closed mixed on Thursday as a rally in major technology firms and solid mainland inflows offset a broader market sell-off driven by escalating Middle East tensions.
The Hang Seng Index retreated 0.7 per cent to close at 24,030, reversing some of the previous session’s strong gains, while the Hang Seng Tech Index edged up 0.01 per cent.
Among high-profile tech movers, artificial intelligence model developer Knowledge Atlas Technology, also known as Zhipu AI, bucked the downward trend to surge over 11 per cent as volatility surrounding its recent IPO share lock-up expiration eased. In contrast, rival MiniMax tumbled nearly 18 per cent during its first major lock-up expiry.
Semiconductor players also bucked the broader market decline. Smart-Core Holdings and GigaDevice jumped more than 27 per cent and 21 per cent, respectively. Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation surged around 10 per cent.
On the mainland, equities reflected a more resilient underlying sentiment. The SSE Star 50 index, which tracks Shanghai’s tech board, surged more than 8 per cent by the close, while the ChiNext 50 gauge of Shenzhen-listed start-ups gained around 5 per cent. The broader CSI 300 Index advanced 2.5 per cent.
“Both [mainland and Hong Kong] markets were driven by a technical rebound, as the recent sell-off was overdone,” said Hong Hao, chief investment officer at Hong Kong-based Lotus Asset Management.