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Business Recorder
15-07-2025
- Business
- Business Recorder
China stocks wobble after GDP data while HK gains on tech rally
HONG KONG: China stocks struggled for direction on Tuesday as the second quarter economic growth slowed, while a tech rally boosted Hong Kong shares, thanks to Nvidia's resumption of chip sales to China. At the close, China's blue-chip CSI300 Index was flat, while the Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.4%. Hong Kong benchmark Hang Seng climbed 1.6%. Tech giants listed in Hong Kong jumped 2.8%. Data showed China's gross domestic product grew 5.2% in the April-June quarter from a year earlier, slowing from 5.4% in the first quarter, but just beating analysts' consensus expectations of a 5.1% rise in a Reuters poll. Analysts said the U.S.-China trade truce and strong exports helped the world's No.2 economy avoid a sharp slowdown. Meanwhile, the property downturn remained a drag on overall growth, with investment in the sector falling 11.2% year-on-year in the first six months. In June, China's new home prices fell at the fastest monthly pace in eight months, highlighting the weak demand. China stocks gain on pickup in exports CSI 300 real estate dropped more than 1%, among the worst performers in mainland A-shares. The market didn't move much as there are offsetting data, said Kai Wang, Asia equity market strategist, Morningstar. 'For the bad news, consumption sales and housing prices, two key areas that required improvement, did not really show us any significant improvement,' Wang said. However, U.S. tariffs have not affected China's overall economy as feared thanks to resilient export data, he added. Meanwhile, the news that Nvidia will resume sales of its H20 artificial intelligence chip to China lifted cloud computing, 5G communications stocks. In Hong Kong, internet giants jumped, with Alibaba and Tencent gaining 7% and 4%, respectively. The latest news is positive for overall sector sentiment, and for Alibaba/Tencent/Baidu /Kingsoft Cloud, said Thomas Chong, an analyst at Jefferies.
Business Recorder
15-07-2025
- Business
- Business Recorder
China stocks fall, Hong Kong edges higher as GDP data paints a mixed picture
HONG KONG: China stocks dropped on Tuesday, while Hong Kong shares inched higher, as China's economy slowed in the second quarter despite beating market forecasts, with persistent property sector weakness weighing on sentiment. China's blue-chip CSI300 Index fell 0.5% by the lunch break, while the Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.9%. Hong Kong benchmark Hang Seng was up 0.2%, and Hang Seng Tech Index rose 0.4%. Data showed China's gross domestic product grew 5.2% in the April-June quarter from a year earlier, slowing from 5.4% in the first quarter, but just beating analysts' consensus expectations of a 5.1% rise in a Reuters poll. Analysts said the U.S.-China trade truce and strong exports helped the world's No.2 economy avoid a sharp slowdown. property downturn remained a drag on overall growth, with investment in the sector falling 11.2% year-on-year in the first six months. In June, China's new home prices fell at the fastest monthly pace in eight months, highlighting the weak demand. China stocks gain on pickup in exports CSI 300 Real Estate dropped 2%, while Hong Kong listed mainland developers declined 1.9% to lead the decline. Market didn't move much as there are offsetting data, said Kai Wang, Asia equity market strategist, Morningstar. 'For the bad news, consumption sales and housing prices, two key areas that required improvement, did not really show us any significant improvement,' Wang said. However, U.S. tariffs have not affected China's overall economy as feared thanks to resilient export data, he added. Meanwhile, the news that Nvidia will resume sales of its H20 artificial intelligence chip to China lifted cloud computing, 5G communications stocks. Goldman Sachs analysts said policymakers are unlikely to launch broad-based, significant stimulus at the July Politburo meeting, but they may implement incremental, targeted easing to help stem the property downturn and mitigate labor market pressures in the second half.
CNBC
03-07-2025
- Business
- CNBC
Like Google, China's biggest search player Baidu is beefing up its product with AI to fight rivals
Chinese tech giant Baidu has bolstered its core search platform with artificial intelligence in the biggest overhaul of the product in 10 years. Analysts told CNBC the move was a bid to keep ahead of fast-moving rivals like DeepSeek, rather than traditional search players. "There has been some small pressure on the search business but the focus on AI and Ernie Bot is a key move ahead," Dan Ives, global head of tech research at Wedbush Securities, told CNBC by email. Ernie Bot is Baidu's AI chatbot. "Baidu is not waiting around to watch the paint dry, full steam ahead on AI," he added. Baidu is China's biggest search engine, but — as is also being seen by Google — the search market is being disrupted. Users are flocking instead to AI services such as ChatGPT or DeepSeek, which shocked the world this year with its advanced model it claimed was created at a fraction of the cost of rivals. But Kai Wang, Asia equity market strategist at Morningstar, also noted that short video platforms such as Douyin and Kuaishou are also getting into AI search and piling pressure on Baidu. To counter this, Baidu made some major changes to its core search product: "This is more aligned with how people use ChatGPT and DeepSeek in terms of how they look for answers," Wang said. Outside of China, Google has also been looking to enhance its core search product with AI, highlighting how search has been under pressure from the burgeoning technology. Baidu was one of China's first movers when it came to AI, releasing its first models and ChatGPT-style product Ernie Bot to the public in 2023. Since then, it has aggressively launched updated AI models. However, the Beijing-headquartered company has also faced intense competition from fellow tech giants like Alibaba and Tencent, as well as upstarts such as DeepSeek. These companies have also been launching new models and infusing AI into their products and Baidu's stock has fallen behind as a result. Baidu shares have risen around 2.5% this year, versus a 30.5% surge for Alibaba and a 20% rise for Tencent. "This is a defensive and offensive move ... Baidu needs to be aggressive and perception-wise show they are not the little brother to Tencent on the AI front," Wedbush Securities' Ives added.
Straits Times
20-06-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
Singapore shares in the red amid mixed regional showing; STI down 0.3%
SINGAPORE – Shares here declined on June 20 amid concerns over a possible US strike on Iran and the resulting dangers to oil supplies. US equity markets were closed for the Juneteenth holiday overnight, so investors here had to look elsewhere for leads and they didn't like what they saw. While news that the US has delayed any Iranian intervention for two weeks slightly eased tensions, the looming uncertainties still pushed stocks lower. 'The worsening global geopolitical weather keeps investors in a cautious mode, and will likely prevent them from taking too much risk before the weekend,' said Swissquote Bank senior analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya. The wary mood helped send the Straits Times Index (STI) down 0.3 per cent or 10.75 points to 3,883.43 but gainers beat losers 253 to 203 on solid trade of 1.3 billion securities worth $2.2 billion. The geopolitical uncertainty did not take much of a toll on regional indexes. While Japan's Nikkei 225 and Australia's ASX 200 both slipped 0.2 per cent, the Kospi in South Korea climbed 1.5 per cent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 1.3 per cent and Malaysian stocks edged up 0.1 per cent. The Hang Seng Index is now nearly back to its March 2025 highs following the announcement of the trade war truce, noted Morningstar equity market strategist Kai Wang. He added that 'tariffs may again rear its ugly head' in the second half of the year, noting: 'We could see their consequences and whether earnings are under pressure as there are still headwinds to consumer confidence.' The STI's top gainer was conglomerate Jardine Cycle & Carriage, which advanced 3.3 per cent to close at $24.45, while Frasers Logistics and Commercial Trust led the blue-chip losers, falling 2.4 per cent to 81.5 cents. The three local banks were mixed: UOB edged up 0.5 per cent to $34.89; OCBC fell 0.6 per cent to $15.90; and DBS slipped 0.1 per cent to $43.88. THE BUSINESS TIMES Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Business Times
20-06-2025
- Business
- Business Times
Singapore shares end Friday in the red amid mixed regional showing; STI down 0.3%
[SINGAPORE] Local stocks ended lower on Friday (Jun 20), amid a mixed regional performance and growing concerns over a possible US military strike on Iran. The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) fell 0.3 per cent or 10.75 points to 3,883.43. Across the broader market, advancers beat decliners 253 to 203, with 1.3 billion securities worth S$2.2 billion changing hands. While the news that the US is giving itself two weeks to decide whether to intervene in Iran has slightly eased tensions, the looming uncertainties still pushed US and European equities lower. 'The worsening global geopolitical weather keeps investors in a cautious mode, and will likely prevent them from taking too much risk before the weekend,' said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank. Amid this geopolitical uncertainty, key regional indices in Asia-Pacific were mixed. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Japan's Nikkei 225 and Australia's ASX 200 both slipped by 0.2 per cent. Meanwhile, South Korea's Kospi Composite Index climbed 1.5 per cent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 1.3 per cent and the Bursa Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Composite Index edged up by 0.1 per cent. The Hang Seng Index is now nearly back to its March 2025 highs following the announcement of the trade war truce, noted Kai Wang, Asia equity market strategist at Morningstar. He highlighted that markets were volatile from January to April due to tariff concerns and suggested that the second half of the year will highly be dependent on tariffs again, but 'tariffs may finally rear its ugly head'. 'We could see their consequences and whether earnings are under pressure as there are still headwinds to consumer confidence,' he added. The top gainer on the STI was Hong Kong-based conglomerate Jardine Cycle & Carriage (C&C), which gained 3.3 per cent or S$0.77 to close at S$24.45. The biggest decliner among the constituents was Frasers Logistics and Commercial Trust (FLCT) , which shed 2.4 per cent or S$0.02 to S$0.815. The three local banks ended mixed. UOB edged up 0.5 per cent or S$0.18 to S$34.89, OCBC fell 0.6 per cent or S$0.09 to S$15.90, while DBS slipped 0.1 per cent or S$0.05 to S$43.88.
