Robotics rally, BIDU surges, POP MART 'stalls' again｜Daily News Recap
1230 ｜Dolphin Research Focus
🐬 Macro / Industry
1. The robotics sector rallied in both HK and A-shares. The move was likely driven by two market rumors: the Trump administration may issue an executive order on robotics in 2026, potentially unlocking policy tailwinds for the industry; and supply-chain players have been visiting North America frequently, with the market expecting Tesla’s Optimus humanoid robot program to start awarding contracts soon.
Institutions project phased deliveries starting in Q1 2026, with full-year capacity of 80–100k units, and related component suppliers have begun to warm up.
2. Trump said he is considering suing Fed Chair Jerome Powell for ‘gross negligence,’ alleging mismanagement of the Fed’s HQ renovation that saw its budget jump from $1.9bn to nearly $2.5bn. He also indicated he may name his next Fed chair pick in Jan., expanding the shortlist to 11 candidates, including close allies and hawkish economists.
Anticipated personnel changes could heighten near-term volatility in U.S. stocks and Treasuries, complicating the market’s read on monetary policy.
🐬 Single Stocks
1.$BIDU-SW(09888.HK)
BIDU rose over 8% today. On Dec. 22, Uber and Lyft announced a partnership with BIDU to launch a Robotaxi pilot in the U.K. in 2026, marking the company’s autonomous driving entry into mainstream U.S./EU markets.
This is a key commercialization milestone, leveraging Uber/Lyft channels to accelerate overseas expansion and validate global adaptability. It also lifts capital-market confidence in BIDU’s AI biz., though overseas rollout still faces local regulation and road-condition hurdles, and the profit timeline remains uncertain.
2.$CTG DUTY-FREE(01880.HK)
China Duty Free said its wholly owned unit signed a contract with Beijing Capital Airport Commerce, securing the T3 terminal’s inbound/outbound duty-free operations and further reinforcing its core airport footprint. The company previously won both Shanghai airport duty-free projects, now achieving full coverage across key northern and southern hubs.
Winning Beijing Capital Airport strengthens its de facto monopoly, and together with the Shanghai projects further raises barriers in core airport channels. As outbound travel recovers, airport duty-free should continue to add to revenue growth.
3.$Meta Platforms(META.US)
META announced a multi-billion-dollar acquisition of AI agent company Manus, its third-largest deal historically. Manus has processed over 147 trillion tokens and will remain independent post-deal, with its founder becoming a META VP to continue building general AI agents.
The move fills META’s application-layer gap, rapidly strengthening productization of general-purpose agents and helping it catch up with OpenAI and Google. Competition is shifting from foundation models to the application layer, with leaders using M&A to speed ecosystem build-out.
4.$Lululemon(LULU.US)
LULU founder Chip Wilson launched an offensive to unseat the current BOD, with concerns focused on strategy and management decisions, arguing the team has failed to sustain the brand’s core moat. The power struggle could trigger governance turbulence, pressuring the stock and investor confidence in the near term.
5.$POP MART(09992.HK)
POP MART fell over 4% today as secondary prices for its Labubu blind boxes slumped, sparking heated debate. The topic ‘Pop Mart starts a 50% clearance sale’ briefly topped Weibo’s trending list last night.
Since June, Labubu has been massively restocked across channels, with monthly output ramping from 10mn to 50mn units, eroding scarcity. Full-set and rare items are down over 80% from peak, and some singles now trade below issue price (e.g., RMB 99 items saw flash-sale lows at RMB 82), prompting scalpers to pause buying as user expectations shift.
The market is questioning the sustainability of its ‘scarcity marketing + hype’ model and fears slower growth in core IP revenue. Adding pressure, short sell value reached HK$304mn on Dec. 29 and outstanding short interest hit a YTD high, driving continued share-price weakness.
6.$XIAOMI-W(01810.HK)
Lei Jun said on Weibo that a New Year’s Eve livestream will start at 8 p.m. on Dec. 31, with engineers conducting a live teardown of the Xiaomi YU7 vehicle. The ‘tear-down while chatting’ format will also review Xiaomi Auto’s 2025 progress and outline its 2026 strategy.
Inspired by user calls to dissect the model, the event aims to address concerns over product tech details head-on.
🐬 Top Gainers by Sector
A-shares: Oil & gas E&P, aluminum, auto parts & equipment.
HK: Computer & electronics retailers, healthcare IT services, industrial machinery.
U.S.: Oil & gas E&P, real estate development, textiles.
🐬 Watch Tomorrow
1. China official manufacturing PMI.
2. The Fed to release monetary policy meeting Trans.
3. Year-end last trading day: HK stocks and Stock Connect close for the afternoon session.
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