The weekend film "Niu Lai" went viral, despite its rough visuals that don't quite match modern aesthetics, its success stems from a certain rationality—extreme simplicity and sincerity are rare qualities. The symbolism is fitting, as today's stock market saw gains. Hong Kong stocks gapped up over 1.34%.
U.S. July retail sales unexpectedly declined, further strengthening concerns about a cooling U.S. economy. Goldman Sachs Chief Economist Jan Hatzius stated that due to cooling inflation and weak employment, the likelihood of a Fed rate hike in September is "extremely low." Traders have pushed back expectations for a 25-basis-point hike from December to January of next year. Combined with Iran's hardliners abandoning hopes for the U.S. and reportedly secretly expanding military preparations for a "new round of confrontation," the dollar weakened. Both onshore and offshore RMB exchange rates broke through the 6.74 level against the dollar. Spot gold made a comeback, breaking above $4,400 per ounce intraday and reaching $4,410, with Wanguo International Gold (03939) rising over 7%, driven by its Gold Ridge mine in the Solomon Islands becoming a core engine for resource expansion and gold production growth. Shanghai copper also strengthened, breaking above 108,000 yuan per tonne, near the year's high, while LME copper remained above $14,000 per tonne. MMG Ltd (01208) rose over 7%; China Nonferrous Mining (01258) gained over 5%; tungsten leader Jiaxin International Resources (03858) rose nearly 7% on expected H1 pre-tax profits exceeding 1.45 billion yuan.
Data from global energy and commodity price assessment agency Argus shows that ongoing geopolitical conflicts, coupled with low water levels from prolonged droughts in Europe and Latin America, have pushed freight rates on key routes such as the Panama Canal, Rhine River, Red Sea, and Black Sea to record highs. The European route container shipping main contract surged over 10% intraday, driving Hong Kong shipping stocks sharply higher. TS Lines (02510) and Orient Overseas International (00316) rose nearly 7%, while COSCO Shipping Holdings (01919) and COSCO Shipping Energy (01138) both gained over 6%.
In the tech sector, reports emerged that overseas CSPs are beginning to lobby: recently, overseas CSPs and companies like NVIDIA have started lobbying, with expectations of good results. FCC sanctions on optical modules are essentially a "lose-lose" move—optical modules lack RF transmission capabilities, pose no national security threat, and their only complex logic circuits are produced by U.S. companies. These companies stepping forward will make the FCC handle this matter more prudently and rationally. Logically, China and the U.S. are deeply intertwined, and any sanctions would be mutually destructive. Apple's purchase of CXMT's storage chips is likely to gain approval. Today, CXMT (688825.SH) led the charge, surging 12% and directly boosting tech stocks. ZJ Innolight (03308), GigaDevice (03986), Montage Technology (06809), and Tianshu Zhixin (09903) all rose over 8%.
Domestic chip-related policies also provided tailwinds: a four-department tax incentive was implemented, allowing integrated circuit companies to pay income tax on non-monetary asset exchange gains over five years, easing cash flow pressure from M&A and equipment replacement, benefiting wafer fab expansion and asset restructuring. The State Administration for Market Regulation approved the release of five automotive chip industry standards, establishing the world's first national-level capability evaluation standard system for the entire automotive chip industry chain. Chip stocks rallied again, with Hua Hong Semiconductor (01347) and SMIC (00981) rising over 6%; Nexchip (02249) gained over 6% ahead of its August 24 earnings release.
Key insights from the PCB upstream resin supply chain exchange mentioned last Friday: M9-grade hydrocarbon resin usage has significantly increased, with the M9-to-M8 ratio of hydrocarbon resin to PPO upgrading from 1:2 to 2:1. Main beneficiary Circuit Fabology (09630) surged over 14%; Kingboard Laminates (01888) rose over 9%; Kingboard Holdings (00148), Victory Giant Technology (02476), and Guanghe Technology (01989) all gained over 6%.
SenseTime-W (00020) announced expectations of a net profit of approximately 500 million to 700 million yuan in the first half of 2026, turning around from a loss—marking its first consolidated profit since listing in Hong Kong. This profitability stems from investment gains, cutting unprofitable projects, and various expense reductions, with improvements in its core business. Continued focus will be on whether its AI main business can achieve profitability on its own. The stock rose nearly 9% today.
YOFC (601869.SH) issued a dividend distribution announcement: a cash dividend of 0.295 yuan per share (tax included), with the record date set for 2026-8-20 and the ex-dividend date for 2026-8-21. H-shares receive the same, converted to Hong Kong dollars. Since its A-share listing in 2018, YOFC has paid dividends every year, with cumulative cash dividends exceeding 2 billion yuan and a dividend payout ratio of about 30%, returning roughly a third of profits to shareholders. H-shares surged over 12% today.
Unitree Robotics is expected to list in late August (18-24). The company's official Weibo account announced the launch of "Superman": "standing jump of 2 meters, top speed of 12.66 m/s (with 0.85-meter legs), surpassing all human standing jump and sprint records worldwide. The new machine was developed in just over 3 months, with significant room for improvement in the coming months." This is remarkable—Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt set the men's 100m world record of 9.58 seconds at the 2009 Berlin World Championships, with a top speed of 12.42 m/s in the 60-80m segment. The 2026 World Robot Conference will be held from August 19-23 at the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area, themed "Human-Robot Coexistence, Production-Demand Integration." Today's rally focused on low-position stocks: Dobot (02432) rose nearly 7%; Estun Automation (02715), Lens Technology (06613), Johnson Electric Holdings (00179), and Sanhua Intelligent Controls (02050) all gained around 4%.
The pharmaceutical sector remains a market mainstay, with leader WuXi AppTec (02359) rising another 3% today to hit a new all-time high. Asymchem Laboratories (06821) and JOINN Laboratories (06127) rose over 6%, while Genscript Biotech (01548) gained over 4% on H1 adjusted net profit growth of 203.3% and revenue growth of 27.3%, with strong underlying business performance. The market continues to explore the Hang Seng Tech Index revision theme. Key changes include expanding the index's tech theme scope, adjusting constituent stock selection mechanisms, and increasing the number of constituents. Some institutions believe SMOORE International (06969), Biren Technology (06082), AAC Technologies (02018), UBTECH Robotics (09880), and ASMPT (00522) may be included.
Retail data from the Passenger Car Association shows that in July 2026, Geely Galaxy Xingyuan (00175) ranked first in domestic NEV retail sales with 32,306 units, followed by Leapmotor A10 and Tesla Model Y with 26,424 and 25,158 units respectively. According to data compiled by "Yiche," the top three in both NEV and pure electric categories were identical, indicating pure electric products remain the main support for the current NEV retail market. For plug-in hybrid models, the top three in July retail sales were BYD Song Pro, Fangchengbao Titan 7, and BYD Qin PLUS, with sales of 13,757, 10,820, and 7,568 units respectively. In the extended-range category, Chery Exeed V9 ranked first with 8,974 units, followed by AITO M9 and Leapmotor D19 with 7,389 and 7,145 units. For auto investors, sales volume is a key indicator, and top-ranked models attract the most attention. Key beneficiaries include Geely Automobile (00175), Leapmotor (09863), and BYD Company (01211).
BYD Company (01211): Aggressively launching new models to capture the mid-to-low-end market, with energy storage forming a second growth curve. Recently, BYD's Ocean series B-class family sedan—the 2027 Seal 06—officially launched, offering both pure electric and plug-in hybrid versions across 12 trims, priced between 99,900 and 155,900 yuan. BYD Fangchengbao today announced the Titan 7 DM long-range version, positioned as a "tech large-space SUV," with the launch event scheduled for August 18 at 19:00.
Commentary: BYD has been rapidly launching new models recently, focusing on capturing the markets around 100,000 yuan and 200,000 yuan. The value proposition is highly competitive. With global NEV penetration continuing to rise and energy storage representing a trillion-yuan incremental track, the company holds a leading position in both high-growth sectors. BYD's NEV passenger vehicle revenue accounts for over 80%, with full price-band coverage across Dynasty, Ocean, Denza, Fangchengbao, and Yangwang brands, running dual powertrain lines of hybrid and pure electric, and holding the global NEV sales crown. The energy storage system serves as the company's second growth curve, featuring the Haohan storage system for grid-side and residential PV-storage integration. Overseas high-margin business is exploding, with overseas per-vehicle gross profit significantly higher than domestic. In 2026, overseas operations are expected to contribute nearly 80% of total vehicle net profit, serving as the core profit growth driver. Energy storage is expanding globally across the Middle East, Europe, and Latin America, with unique advantages in integrated PV-storage turnkey solutions. The order book is robust: 1) The UAE Masdar 11.275GWh energy storage system, landed in July 2026, is the world's largest single storage procurement contract, paired with a 5.2GW PV plant, with industry estimates of contract scale between 4.4-10.9 billion yuan, delivered in 2027-2028, equivalent to the battery capacity of 186,000 NEVs. 2) Poland's 600MW/2.4GWh storage project, Poland's largest lithium battery storage station, starting construction in Q3 2026 and grid-connected by end-2027, serves as a European benchmark order opening the EU storage market. 3) Saudi Arabia's 12.5GWh grid-side storage project, following the earlier Middle East mega storage project, solidifies its leading position in the Middle East market. Vehicle orders: 1) Domestic: Dynasty, Ocean, Fangchengbao, and Denza models have full order books, with foot traffic at second-generation fast-charging model showrooms significantly recovering, and domestic market share expected to recover to 23%-27% by year-end. 2) Overseas vehicles: H1 2026 overseas deliveries reached 792,200 units (up 71% YoY), with institutional forecasts of 1.5-1.8 million units for the full year and a target of 2.5 million by 2027. Long-term orders are locked in with overseas dealers, with Hungary and Thailand factory capacity ramping up to match delivery demand. 3) Battery external supply: long-term supply agreements with Tesla, Toyota, and Renault, with stable annual framework agreements from overseas automakers providing continued external supply growth. Institutional expectations for 2026 sales are 5 million NEVs globally, with 1.7 million overseas. BYD's overseas growth has been rapid, already achieving leading positions in markets like the UK, demonstrating strong long-term competitiveness, with mega storage orders bringing secured revenue.
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