0514 ｜Dolphin Focus

🐬 Macro / Sector

1. China’s top leadership held a face-to-face meeting with Trump this morning, covering trade, tech cooperation, global governance, and bilateral ties. The dialogue signals a thaw in high-level engagement.

2. Foreign media report the US has eased chip curbs, allowing Alibaba, ByteDance, Tencent, JD.com and eight other Chinese tech firms to buy Nvidia’s H200 high-end AI chips, with Lenovo and Foxconn granted distribution access. This incremental loosening, if implemented, would ease supply gaps for model training and AI compute, supporting faster AI rollouts at China’s internet majors and benefiting Nvidia’s revenue as well as the domestic compute and cloud value chain. However, there has been no official confirmation or import coordination from the Chinese side, so we will watch for regulators’ stance and actual procurement by local firms.

🐬 Single Stocks

1.$CATL(03750.HK)

Ford is entering battery energy storage systems via a tech-licensing model, adopting CATL’s storage cells and system solutions and leveraging its own channels and manufacturing to build out storage markets at home and abroad. CATL’s overseas push through licensing opens a new profit driver and cements its global storage leadership. For Ford, tapping Chinese battery tech quickly fills its storage gap, marking a shift from pure vehicle rivalry to deep energy-ecosystem collaboration between Chinese and foreign automakers, a long-term positive for EV batteries and storage.

2.$XPENG-W(09868.HK)

XPeng is reportedly in talks with Volkswagen and several overseas automakers to acquire a European auto plant, paving the way for local production, tariff avoidance, and deeper penetration of Europe’s NEV market. Buying a European plant would be a key step in its globalization strategy, enabling local manufacturing and sales, lowering trade barriers, and accelerating brand expansion.

3.$Netflix(NFLX.US)

Market chatter suggests Netflix plans to roll out its ad-supported low-price tier in 15 additional countries and regions, using lower pricing and ad segmentation to broaden reach and optimize its monetization mix. By doubling down on ad-supported subscriptions, Netflix aims to drive net adds with value pricing and lift ARPU, creating a second growth curve. The streaming ad-monetization playbook continues to be validated, offering a reference point for China’s long-form video platforms.

4. Dolphin Research focus: earnings and calls.

Alibaba: 'Alibaba: E-com steps back, AI steps up; even heavy reinvestment is fine'. 'Alibaba (Trans): E-com stabilizes, aggressive AI push'.

Tencent: 'Tencent: No more resting on laurels, AI is the right path'. 'Tencent (Trans): Bigger 2H investments, faster cloud, stronger LLMs coming'.

Atour: 'Atour: Hotels recover, retail surges — has the boutique chain turned the corner?'. 'Atour (Trans): Targeting leisure travel, retail is ‘user-first’'.

SMIC will report earnings tonight. We will be watching.

🐬 Top Gainers

A-shares: industrial gases, tobacco, and footwear. These led the board.

HK: furniture/home/decoration retailers, packaging, and agricultural products. These were among the top movers.

US: internet content & info, drug retailers, and auto makers. These outperformed.

🐬 Watch Tomorrow

1. Nio L80 launch. Monitor reception and pricing.

2. Earnings from Leapmotor, Huazhu, and Applied Materials. Key reads to watch.

Risk disclosure and disclaimer: Dolphin Research Disclaimer and General Disclosure