<p>Due to the ongoing tensions in the Middle East and concerns about rising oil prices reigniting inflation, even though the U.S. President has provided naval escorts and political risk insurance for tankers crossing the Strait of Hormuz, the market remains in a risk-averse mode, with risk assets almost universally declining. Hong Kong stocks maintained a weak performance throughout the day, with the Hang Seng Index once plunging 810 points to a low of 24,958 points. Fortunately, there was support at the low, and the decline narrowed towards the end of the market, closing at 25,249 points, down 518 points or 2.01%, with a turnover of HKD 364.3 billion. The Tech Index closed at 4,829 points, down 47 points or 0.96%.</p>
<h2>HSBC and Alibaba both fell over 3% for the day</h2>
<p>Among blue-chip stocks, AIA (1299), WUXI BIO (2269), and CKH HOLDINGS (001) all fell over 4%, making them some of the worst-performing blue chips. HSBC (005) and Alibaba (9988), two heavyweight stocks, also fell over 3%. In contrast, CHINAHONGQIAO (1378) was favored by JP Morgan, expected to benefit from aluminum supply disruptions, with its stock price rising over 6% against the trend.</p>
<p>Everbright Securities International strategist Wu Lixian stated in an interview that the geopolitical risks in the Middle East are impacting not only the Asia-Pacific market but also raising concerns about soaring oil prices. He warned that risk aversion sentiment has been rising, with funds flowing back into the U.S. dollar, putting pressure on the RMB exchange rate. He admitted that in the environment of declining Asia-Pacific stock markets, Hong Kong stocks are hard to escape, and investors holding large tech stocks like Alibaba (9988) and Tencent (700) have suffered significant losses in this round of market decline. Additionally, as the Hong Kong economy is closely linked to the mainland economy, any impact on the mainland economy will also indirectly affect Hong Kong.</p>
<h2>Pay attention to utility and telecom stocks</h2>
<p>Regarding which stocks to consider buying in a declining market, Wu Lixian believes that the current market is still unstable and relatively volatile in the short term. For most conservative investors, they should control their positions and not be too aggressive, and can deploy some defensive stocks, such as local utility stocks like CLP (002) or Hong Kong Electric (2638). For local telecom stocks, they can choose Hong Kong Telecom (6823); additionally, for Chinese telecom operators, they can consider China Mobile (941), China Unicom (762), and China Telecom (728).</p>
<p>Related articles: Stocks to buy in a declining market｜Tang Niu</p>
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<p>1215: The Hang Seng Index opened 298 points lower this morning and continued to decline, at one point dropping 805 points to a low of 24,963 points. As of noon, it reported 25,051 points, down 716 points or 2.78%, barely holding above the 25,000 mark, with a half-day turnover of HKD 207.6 billion. In terms of the Tech Index, it reported 4,780 points at noon, down 95 points or 1.96%. Besides Hong Kong stocks, global stock markets such as Japan and South Korea also fell sharply, with a rare occurrence of both stocks and bonds declining simultaneously. Market opinions suggest that the current market reaction is a classic response to facing high uncertainty.</p>
<p>Related articles: South Korean stocks plummet for consecutive days, dropping another 10% in a single day; the won has seen its largest decline in 16 years, &#34;If oil prices continue to rise, it will definitely fall again.&#34;</p>
<h2>HSBC, AIA, and Alibaba lead the market decline at noon</h2>
<p>Among the heavyweight blue-chip stocks, financial and technology stocks declined, with HSBC (005) and AIA (1299) falling 3.7% and 5.5% respectively, along with Alibaba (9988) dropping over 4%, dragging the Hang Seng Index down by 249 points. Additionally, reports indicate that the U.S. White House is discussing whether to allow Tencent (700) to retain its stake in major gaming companies, with the stock falling 1.6% to HKD 502.5, testing the HKD 500 mark.</p>
<p>Related article: U.S. reportedly discusses whether to allow Tencent to retain investments in gaming companies, stock price tests HKD 500 mark.</p>
<h2>China Life falls 7% in half-day, becoming the worst-performing blue-chip</h2>
<p>In terms of stock price fluctuations, China Life (2628) fell 6.7% in half-day, making it the largest decline among blue-chips, while its peer Ping An (2318) also dropped 4.6%; pharmaceutical stocks also faced selling pressure, with WuXi Biologics (2269) down 5%, and Innovent Biologics falling 4.4%.</p>
<p>On the news front, JPMorgan indicated that insurance stocks lagged behind the market after the Spring Festival, as major insurance companies have yet to announce positive profit forecasts. However, the firm disagrees that this poses a profit risk for the current quarter, noting that the market consensus for the fiscal year 2026 net profit forecast already shows a year-on-year decline of 9%, thus limiting further downward risk to the current market consensus. Kaiyuan Securities pointed out that the surge in insurance stocks around the beginning of 2026 brought a high base, and concerns about AI impacts also negatively pressured the industry, but they believe that the pullback presents a layout opportunity.</p>
<h2>CNOOC falls 4% in half-day, Sinopec and PetroChina drop nearly 40%</h2>
<p>In terms of sector performance, despite ongoing tensions in the Middle East, oil and gold prices remain relatively high, but oil and gold stocks have shown signs of fatigue. CNOOC (883) fell 3.9%, while PetroChina (857) and Sinopec (386) dropped over 4%, and Sinopec Oil (632) plummeted 38%; among oil service stocks, Baker Hughes (2178) fell 25%, Sinopec Oilfield Service (1033) dropped nearly 12%, and Shandong Molong (568) fell nearly 5%.</p>
<p>In terms of gold-related stocks, Zijin Mining (2899) fell 4.4%; its affiliate Zijin Gold International (2259) dropped 4.5%; Shandong Gold (1787) and Zhaojin Mining (1818) fell 4.2% and 3.5% respectively, while Chifeng Jilong Gold (6693) fell 2.8%.</p>
<p>In individual stock news, it is reported that New World Development (017) is facing obstacles in negotiations with Blackstone Group, primarily due to the Cheng family’s unwillingness to relinquish control. The stock closed at HKD 9.13, down over 4%.</p>
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<p>0930: As Iran's control over the Strait of Hormuz spurred a surge in oil prices, raising market concerns about inflation reigniting, U.S. stocks fell across the board on Tuesday; however, U.S. President Trump later announced insurance guarantees for vessels in the Strait of Hormuz and stated that the U.S. Navy would begin escorting oil tankers through the Strait as necessary, alleviating concerns about disruptions in oil transportation.</p>
<p>The three major U.S. stock indices narrowed their losses towards the end of trading, with the Dow Jones closing down only 403 points or 0.83% at 48,501 points; the S&amp;P 500 fell 64 points or 0.94% to 6,816 points; and the Nasdaq dropped 232 points or 1.02% to 22,516 points. As for the Golden Dragon Index, which reflects the movement of Chinese concept stocks, it fell 3.34% to 6,958 points on Tuesday</p>
<h2>US Dollar Continues to Rise, Japanese and Korean Stock Markets Under Pressure</h2>
<p>In addition, the US Dollar Index continues to rise, currently at 99.2, up about 0.14%; after a drop of over 4% yesterday, gold prices rebounded this morning, rising about 1.3% to USD 5,156; oil prices remain high, with Brent crude rising 1.2% to USD 82.35, and WTI crude rising 1% to USD 75.28.</p>
<p>On the other hand, the Asia-Pacific stock markets opened under pressure this morning, with the Korean stock market down nearly 5% to 5,503 points, and the Japanese stock market down 2.8% to 54,698 points. The Hong Kong stock market opened at 25,469 points, down 298 points or 1.16%.</p>
<h2>Jack Ma Leads Core Management Team at YunGu School</h2>
<p>Tech stocks are generally weak, with Alibaba (9988) founder Jack Ma reportedly leading the core management teams of Alibaba and Ant Group to gather at YunGu School in Hangzhou. The stock opened at 131.2, down 2.7%; Tencent (700) fell 0.9%; Meituan (3690) fell 1.3%; JD.com (9618) fell 1.1%; and Baidu (9888) also fell 2.3%.</p>
<h2>Xiaomi's New Generation SU7 Vehicles Enter Stores in Large Numbers</h2>
<p>Xiaomi (1810) announced that its new generation SU7 vehicles will begin to enter stores in large numbers starting today (4th). The stock opened at HKD 31.46, down 0.4%.</p>
<h2>Oil Service Stocks Hotly Traded, Shandong Molong Opens Up 15%</h2>
<p>Recently hotly traded oil-related stocks have shown mixed developments, with CNOOC (883) down 0.6%; PetroChina (857) down 0.1%; China National Offshore Oil Corporation (632) up 4.5%; Shandong Molong (568) and Baqian Oil Services (2178) up 15% and 12% respectively. In terms of gold-related stocks, Zijin (2899) opened down over 3%; Chifeng Jilong Gold Mining (6693) down over 5%; and Zhaojin Mining (1818) down 3.6%.</p>
<h2>China National Pharmaceutical and Sanofi-Aventis Sign Agreement</h2>
<p>China National Pharmaceutical (1177) announced that its subsidiary, Chongqing Tianqing, has signed an exclusive licensing agreement with a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sanofi for the global development, production, and commercialization of the group's JAK/ROCK inhibitor, Ruxolitinib. The stock opened at HKD 5.67, down 0.7%.</p>
<p>Regarding the northbound capital flow, there was a net purchase of HKD 6.081 billion in Hong Kong stocks yesterday, with Tencent (700), Tracker Fund of Hong Kong (2800), and Southern Hang Seng Technology (3033) receiving net purchases of HKD 2.559 billion, HKD 2.343 billion, and HKD 1.413 billion respectively; while Alibaba (9988), China COSCO Shipping Energy (1138), and Yangtze Optical Fibre and Cable (6869) faced net sales of HKD 1.209 billion, HKD 384 million, and HKD 293 million respectively</p>

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<p>Hong Kong stocks fell by 518 points due to rising tensions in the Middle East and soaring oil prices, with the Hang Seng Index closing at 25,249 points, a decline of 2.01%. Blue-chip stocks such as AIA, WUXI BIO, and CKH HOLDINGS dropped over 4%, while CHINAHONGQIAO rose more than 6% against the trend. Analysts pointed out that as risk aversion increases, funds are flowing into the US dollar, putting pressure on the RMB exchange rate. Investors should control their positions and pay attention to utility stocks and telecommunications stocks</p>

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Hong Kong stocks closed down 518 points, AIA fell over 4%, CHINAHONGQIAO rose against the trend. Analysis: Funds are flowing back to the US dollar | Hong Kong stock market opening