Hong Kong's three major stock indices closed higher collectively on Monday. The Hang Seng Index rose 0.48%, or 122.67 points, to finish at 25,797.85, with a full-day turnover of HKD 272.166 billion. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index gained 0.49% to 8,639.96, while the Hang Seng Tech Index edged up 0.26% to 4,857.46. Analysts from Soochow Securities noted that while short-term pressure from overseas factors persists, Hong Kong stocks still hold long-term allocation value. The surge in U.S. Treasury yields is impacting the market's short-term performance. With the 10-year and 30-year yields breaking through 4.5% and 5% respectively, entering a cautionary zone, this is expected to affect the tech and growth sectors in the near term. The continuation of the U.S. NACHO trade, coupled with stronger-than-expected recent U.S. inflation data, is leading the market to gradually price in long-term inflation. Whether oil prices can retreat in late May remains a key variable.
Among blue-chip stocks, TENCENT (00700) performed strongly, closing up 2.4% at HKD 460, with a turnover of HKD 15.552 billion, contributing 43.64 points to the Hang Seng Index. On May 19, Tencent Cloud announced that the Hy3 preview and DeepSeek-V4-Pro models provided on its Intelligent Agent Development Platform will end their limited-time free public beta at 10:00 AM Beijing Time on May 27, 2026, transitioning to formal commercial services with pay-as-you-go billing based on model usage.
Other blue-chip movers included CNOOC (00883), which rose 2.99% to HKD 27.56, contributing 19.8 index points. China Resources Power (00836) gained 1.9% to HKD 20.42, adding 1.26 points. Conversely, Li Auto-W (02015) fell 4.31% to HKD 62.10, dragging the index down by 6.2 points. Zijin Mining (02899) declined 2.96% to HKD 33.40, weighing on the index by 9.74 points.
Sector-wise, most technology stocks advanced. Bilibili rose over 3% ahead of its earnings report, TENCENT gained over 2%, while Alibaba and Baidu both increased over 1%. The brain-computer interface (BCI) concept saw a significant surge, with BRAINAURORA-B (06681) soaring over 50% at one point. Power stocks also moved higher, with several names rising more than 2%. On the downside, the memory chip sector weakened under pressure after a former Samsung executive warned of oversupply. The gold sector continued its weak trend, weighed down by inflation concerns and interest rate expectations. Automotive, lithium battery, and home appliance stocks also softened.
1. BCI concept stocks surged in the morning session. By the close, BRAINAURORA-B (06681) was up 34.43% at HKD 4.10. MicroPort NeuroTech (02172) gained over 3.57% to HKD 9.28. Nanjing Panda Electronics (00553) rose 2.62% to HKD 4.70. On May 18, China officially launched the first multi-center clinical trial for a 128-channel fully implantable brain-computer interface system. Led by Beijing Tiantan Hospital, Capital Medical University, this trial marks a significant step in accelerating the clinical translation of China's self-developed fully invasive BCI technology, offering new rehabilitation methods for patients with quadriplegia. BOC International previously noted that the BCI industry is at a critical stage transitioning from laboratory breakthroughs to commercial application, with rapid progress across three major technological pathways, suggesting the market has significant potential for rapid expansion.
2. Most power stocks moved higher. By the close, HUANENG POWER (00902) was up 2.43% at HKD 6.75. Datang Power (00991) gained 2.04% to HKD 3.00. China Resources Power (00836) rose 1.9% to HKD 20.42. The explosive growth in AI computing demand is gradually being transmitted to the power sector. Driven by a 350% surge in token demand, the 2026 capital expenditure forecast for overseas hyperscale cloud service providers has been sharply revised upward from USD 450 billion to USD 800 billion. Furthermore, Morgan Stanley expects data centers to face a 55GW power deficit. In a related development, U.S. utility giant NextEra Energy has agreed to acquire Dominion Energy in an all-stock deal valued at approximately USD 67 billion, marking the largest-ever power sector acquisition. Analysts suggest the scale of this deal highlights how the AI-driven surge in power demand is pushing the industry towards greater scale and influence.
3. The memory chip concept narrowed its losses in the afternoon session. By the close, the Samsung 2x Daily Leverage Product (07709) fell 10.38% to HKD 81.14. Montage Technology (06809) declined 3.9% to HKD 423.60. U.S. memory chip stocks slumped overnight, with Seagate Technology plunging over 6% and SanDisk dropping over 5%. South Korea's Kospi index also fell over 4% at one point today, with SK Hynix down over 5%. Kyung Kye-hyun, former president of Samsung Electronics' semiconductor division, publicly warned that driven by significant capacity expansion by Chinese firms, global memory chip supply will increase sharply in the second half of next year, potentially leading to price declines. He also cautioned that if the return on capital expenditure for major tech companies decreases, memory demand itself could face contraction risks after 2028.
4. Gold stocks declined again. By the close, China Gold International (02099) fell 3.26% to HKD 154.20. Lingbao Gold (03330) dropped 3.17% to HKD 18.31. Zijin Gold International (02259) was down 3.17% at HKD 145.40. CITIC Futures noted that negotiations on Hormuz Strait navigation still lack substantive breakthroughs. Combined with a tough U.S. stance towards Iran and security-related disturbances in the Middle East, the energy price center is unlikely to retreat significantly in the short term. The inflation-interest rate-U.S. dollar dynamic remains the core logic suppressing gold prices. The agency believes gold remains under dual constraints from inflation/interest rate pressure and weakening physical demand in the near term, with prices likely to maintain a weak, high-volatility pattern. The Fed meeting minutes, changes in energy prices, and progress in U.S.-Iran talks are key variables for the week.
Among other notable movers, Yan Sang Group (06893) surged on heavy volume, closing up 109.56% at HKD 0.285. The company announced that Steven Ma (also known as Ma Junwei) will be appointed as an Executive Director, Vice Chairman of the Board, and Co-CEO, effective May 20, 2026. Upon appointment, Steven Ma will serve as Co-CEO alongside Guan Liwen, responsible for overseeing the group's overall management and strategic planning.
CIG (06166) rallied in the afternoon, closing up 13.28% at HKD 157.00. As global AI computing infrastructure construction continues, data center demand for high-speed optical interconnect remains robust. CIG stated during its earnings call that its current annualized optical module production capacity is 3.5 million units. The company is experiencing strong order demand for high-speed optical modules and is actively advancing capacity expansion at its domestic and international production bases to ensure the delivery of 800G and 1.6T products.
Tencent Music Entertainment-SW (01698) performed strongly, closing up 4.96% at HKD 35.94. The company announced the completion of its acquisition of Himalaya. According to the announcement, on May 18, the acquisition of Himalaya by Tencent Music was completed in accordance with the terms of the merger agreement. Post-completion, Himalaya has become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tencent Music.
Damai Entertainment (01060) remained active, closing up 4.76% at HKD 0.66. The film "Letter to Grandma" has topped the daily box office chart for nine consecutive days. The latest forecast from Maoyan Professional Edition predicts the film's total box office to reach RMB 1.6 billion. Additionally, Damai Entertainment previously projected that for the 12 months ending March 31, 2026, the net profit attributable to the company's owners would be no less than RMB 700 million.
JU TENG INTL (03336) saw its shares plummet, closing down 25.93% at HKD 3.00. Lens Technology and JU TENG INTL jointly announced that Lens Technology (the Offeror) will acquire approximately 333.7 million JU TENG INTL shares from the seller, representing about 27.81% of the issued share capital, for a total consideration of HKD 734 million. Upon completion of the share purchase agreement, the Offeror will make a voluntary conditional general cash offer for all remaining shares at a cash offer price of HKD 2.2 per share, representing a discount of approximately 45.68% to the last closing price of HKD 4.05 before the trading halt.
