During the morning session, the A-share market experienced overall fluctuations and adjustments. The Beijing Stock Exchange 50 Index stood out, rising nearly 3% against the market trend at one point. Meanwhile, the STAR Composite Index fell over 2%, and the Shenzhen Component Index and the ChiNext Index both declined more than 1%. The Shanghai Composite Index and the CSI 1000 Index also saw minor losses, while market trading volume remained stable.

Sector-wise, robotics, shipping ports, gaming, and communication engineering led the gains. In contrast, semiconductors, energy metals, power grid equipment, and chemicals were among the top decliners.

The robotics industry continues to show rising prosperity. The robotics sector strengthened across the board in the morning, with humanoid robot stocks being particularly active. The sector index rose for the fifth consecutive day, hitting a new high in nearly three and a half months. Est Tools Co.,Ltd. surged by the 20% daily limit. Nearly 20 stocks, including Wanda Bearing, Sanrui Intelligent, Wuzhou Spring, and Julong Intelligent, rose by the daily limit or gained over 10%.

Sub-sectors such as motor manufacturing, reducers, exoskeleton robots, and PEEK materials also advanced against the market trend. Tianming Technology jumped by the 30% limit, while Xunjiexing hit the 20% limit. Beitou Technology rose by the daily limit in just about one minute, and Titan Shares achieved the limit in approximately two minutes. Stocks like Huazhijie, Yingfeng Shares, and Ruihu Mold also surged to the limit shortly before the midday close.

According to customs statistics, China's robotics industry accelerated its expansion into overseas markets in the first quarter of this year. The total export value of all separately listed "robots" reached 11.32 billion yuan, with products sold to 148 countries and regions worldwide. Exports of industrial robots amounted to 3.16 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 42%.

Additionally, Tesla CEO Elon Musk confirmed during the Q1 2026 earnings call that the Optimus robot will begin production in Fremont in late July or August. After the final Model X rolls off the line, Tesla will dismantle the Model X/S production lines and fully convert them into dedicated Optimus production lines.

The State Grid recently issued an internal "2026 Embodied Intelligence Development Plan," outlining centralized procurement of approximately 8,500 embodied intelligence devices for the year, with a total investment of 6.8 billion yuan. Japan Airlines also announced that, starting in May, it will trial the use of humanoid robots for ground service work at Tokyo's Haneda Airport.

Huaxin Securities believes the robotics sector is currently at a relatively low overall level, with catalysts related to the Tesla supply chain gradually advancing. The Optimus v3 is expected to be released mid-year, and the firm is optimistic about the sustainability of the sector's upward trend. It recommends prioritizing investments in确定性标的 within the Tesla supply chain ahead of the V3 release.

Gaming concept stocks initially experienced a sharp, volume-driven rise at the market open. Sub-sectors like cloud gaming, the metaverse, virtual reality, and online games advanced against the broader market trend. Perfect World opened higher and quickly hit the daily limit. Stocks such as Gravity Media, Sanxiang Impression, and Roman Shares also rose strongly to the limit.

In related news, Perfect World Esports will host the world-class event "CAC 2026" in Shanghai from May 20 to 24, 2026, with a total prize pool of $1 million. The tournament will feature 16 teams: 12 directly invited based on the February 2026 world VRS rankings, 2 wildcard teams, and the remaining 2 spots determined through a closed Asian qualifier.

Furthermore, "The International" (TI) for DOTA2 will also be held in Shanghai in August. TI is the highest-level global esports tournament for DOTA2, and Chinese teams have won the championship three times. The 2021 TI prize pool reached $40.01 million, a record for a single esports event that remains unbroken.

In recent years, China's gaming industry has developed rapidly. In 2025, the National Press and Publication Administration issued a total of 1,771 game licenses, a 25% increase from 2024 and 3.46 times the number issued during the low point in 2022.

The latest data from the China Audio-video and Digital Publishing Association's Game Publishing Committee shows that the actual sales revenue of China's gaming market in the first quarter of 2026 reached 97.172 billion yuan, a quarter-on-quarter increase of 2.54% and a significant year-on-year increase of 13.38%. The PC gaming market showed strong growth, with first-quarter revenue reaching 24.976 billion yuan, up 11.17% quarter-on-quarter and surging 39.38% year-on-year. The overseas market also performed impressively, with first-quarter revenue reaching $6.331 billion, a 6.23% increase from the previous quarter and a substantial 31.76% rise year-on-year.

GF Securities pointed out that demand in the gaming market continues to grow, and users' willingness to pay for high-quality games is steadily increasing. The performance and immersive experience of PC-based products are generally superior to mobile platforms. The growth in cross-platform products and the PC market essentially reflects users' increased willingness to pay for higher-quality, better-experience games, expanding the market space for top-tier, high-quality products.