** Hong Kong shares of Chinese electric vehicle maker NIO Inc 9866.HK rise 6.7% to HK$39, on track for the biggest one-day pct rise since September 17

** Stock hit the highest level since January 5 in the second session of gain; top pct gainer in Hang Seng TECH Index .HSTECH and Hang Seng Automobile Index .HSAMI, which are down 1.6% and 0.7%, respectively

** U.S.-listed shares NIO.N rose 5.9% on Thursday

** NIO said on Thursday it expects to post its first-ever adjusted operating profit in the fourth quarter of 2025, driven by higher vehicle sales and cost cuts

** NIO expects quarterly adjusted operating profit of 700 mln yuan ($100.87 mln) to 1.2 bln yuan ($172.92 mln), compared with an adjusted operating loss of 5.54 bln yuan a year earlier

** YTD, Hong Kong stock down 5.9%, U.S.-listed shares down 7.8%

($1 = 6.9398 Chinese yuan renminbi)

(Reporting by Donny Kwok)

((donny.kwok@thomsonreuters.com))