Commercial space concept stocks are strengthening once again! Today, commercial space concept stocks experienced a significant surge. As of the time of writing, over 20 related stocks, including Beimo High-tech, Western Materials, and Tiantong Co., Ltd., have hit their daily limit-up or risen more than 10%.
Several pieces of news have provided a boost to the sector: First, foreign media reported that Elon Musk is actively advancing the listing plan for SpaceX, targeting an IPO completion before July this year. Second, the 3rd Beijing Commercial Aerospace Industry High-Quality Development Promotion Conference will be held in the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area from January 23rd to 24th. Third, according to a CCTV News report, China's first offshore liquid rocket launch and recovery test platform is currently under accelerated construction.
Commercial space concept stocks collectively surged. After several days of consecutive declines, commercial space concept stocks surged again today. As of the time of writing, the overall commercial space sector rose over 2%. More than 20 related stocks, such as Triangle Defence, China First Heavy Industries, Zhongchao Holding, Galaxy Electronics, Beimo High-tech, Western Materials, Tiantong Co., Ltd., and Great Wall Electrical, hit their daily limit-up or rose more than 10%. Stocks like Sunway Communication, Zaisheng Technology, and China Satellite Communications also followed with gains.
On the news front, according to a CCTV News report, this year marks the beginning of the 15th Five-Year Plan period, where the goal of "accelerating the building of a strong space nation" has been included as a key task in the national five-year plan for the first time. In Haiyang City, Yantai, Shandong Province, lies China's only commercial aerospace offshore launch port. Recently, the country's first offshore liquid rocket launch and recovery test platform is being rapidly constructed. Around the Spring Festival period, a mainstream domestic commercial liquid rocket will conduct a launch and recovery test here, which also marks China's first-ever offshore launch and recovery test for a liquid rocket.
Previously, the Oriental Spaceport in Haiyang, Yantai, Shandong, has executed 22 offshore launch missions, all involving solid rockets. The advantage of solid rockets lies in their high mobility and flexible launch methods; however, their payload capacity is relatively small, and they are not reusable. In contrast, liquid rockets have greater payload capacity, can be recovered and reused, significantly reducing the cost of satellite constellation deployment. Therefore, reusable liquid rocket launches have become the primary direction for China's commercial space launches.
Furthermore, according to news from "Beijing Yizhuang," 2026 is the inaugural year of the 15th Five-Year Plan and a critical window for the accelerated development of China's commercial space industry. The 3rd Beijing Commercial Aerospace Industry High-Quality Development Promotion Conference is scheduled for January 23rd-24th in the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area. Themed "Gathering Strength for Innovation, Focusing Quality on Aerospace," the conference will feature sessions including achievement releases, keynote reports, and thematic seminars, inviting representatives from government departments, aerospace research institutes, leading enterprises, and financial institutions to explore new trends in technological transformation and chart a new vision for industrial development.
It is reported that a batch of key project platforms will be collectively released, outlining the future blueprint for the commercial space industry. Not long ago, the country's first shared commercial aerospace research and production base—Beijing Rocket Street—was completed and delivered. During the conference, the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area will officially launch multiple innovation service platforms to further optimize the development ecosystem of Beijing Rocket Street. Simultaneously, the Development Area will also release a series of industrial projects to continuously expand the industrial landscape.
In 2025, China's commercial space sector maintained rapid development, completing 50 launches throughout the year, accounting for 54% of the country's total space launches. Among these, commercial launch vehicle missions numbered 25; the Hainan Commercial Space Launch Site became operational and conducted 9 launches; and other commercial satellite launches totaled 16. For the full year, 311 commercial satellites were successfully orbited, representing 84% of China's total satellites launched. Reusable launch vehicle technology saw accelerated breakthroughs, with the Zhuque-3 reusable launch vehicle completing its maiden flight, successfully achieving second-stage orbit insertion and conducting core technology verification for first-stage re-entry and recovery.
Galaxy Securities stated that the commercial space industry is still in its early stages and is entering a golden era driven by both demand-side and supply-side forces. 1) Satellite Launches: Private rocket companies are developing rapidly, with the industrial chain currently in a transition phase from national to commercial space endeavors. Attention is advised on structural component suppliers. 2) Satellite Manufacturing: Current low-earth orbit satellite activities primarily focus on infrastructure construction in the space and ground segments, with short-term emphasis on the satellite manufacturing field. Upstream and midstream subsystems and materials sectors, which directly support mass satellite production, are expected to benefit first.
Musk accelerates SpaceX listing plan. Recently, The Wall Street Journal, citing informed sources, reported that SpaceX is preparing for a rapid entry into the public markets, as Musk pivots the rocket manufacturer towards an ambitious new frontier in the artificial intelligence field.
According to the report, SpaceX is expected to soon select lead underwriters for the stock offering. Musk has reportedly told associates that he aims to complete the IPO before July.
Founded in 2002, SpaceX has resisted going public for years, but the rise of AI has changed the landscape. Last autumn, SpaceX achieved a strategic breakthrough in developing solar-powered data centers capable of operating at high speeds around Earth. Although this concept has raised skepticism among many engineers, Musk has focused on making SpaceX the first company to achieve this goal.
Reportedly, Musk views the potential tens of billions of dollars from the IPO as a crucial capital engine to help his AI startup, xAI, catch up with competitors. A long-standing competitive relationship exists between Musk and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Sources familiar with the discussions indicated that Altman apparently explored acquiring a rocket company last year to deploy satellites with AI computing capabilities into space.
Industry leaders are increasingly looking towards space to address the massive power demands of generative AI models. Last October, Jeff Bezos stated that moving data center operations into orbit "makes sense" as a way to access continuous solar power and circumvent terrestrial limitations.
The urgency of the IPO timetable highlights a significant shift from Musk's previous stance: he had expressed a desire to avoid public investor scrutiny until Mars missions were achievable. "Should I start a rocket company?" Altman asked in a podcast last June, underscoring the escalating competitive pressure between the two tech titans.
Investors anticipate that a publicly listed SpaceX would provide a capital safety net for xAI's growth, enabling super-normal development in a market where it currently lags behind OpenAI and Google. Meanwhile, some observers predict that large portions of the globe could eventually be covered by data centers.
Market analysts and investment banks are already positioning themselves for what could become the largest initial public offering in history. Bloomberg previously reported that SpaceX is targeting a valuation of approximately $1.5 trillion, a significant premium to the company's recent secondary market valuation, which stands around $800 billion.
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