Hong Kong's three major indices faced downward pressure in early trading, with the Hang Seng Tech Index at one point sliding over 2% before the Hang Seng Index and the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index managed to turn positive. At the close, the Hang Seng Index rose 0.07% or 17.92 points to 25,471.15 points, with full-day turnover reaching HK$255.541 billion. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index gained 0.16% to 8,453.2 points, while the Hang Seng Tech Index fell 0.9% to 4,739.18 points.

Guoyuan International believes that domestic fundamentals, earnings expectations, and incremental capital are becoming more important pricing variables. Therefore, the firm maintains "index consolidation with structural opportunities" as its base case, noting that a trend-driven rally still requires improvements in domestic demand and earnings, as well as further inflows from southbound and foreign capital.

Blue-chip performance highlights

Alibaba-W (09988) staged an afternoon rally, closing up 3.68% at HK$126.7 with turnover of HK$15.107 billion, contributing 71.6 points to the index. Morgan Stanley's research report breaks down three monetization paths for China's cloud market: domestic cloud vendors' return on invested capital (ROIC) ranges from 13% to 20%, which, despite being constrained by high hardware costs, has enormous upside potential as inference demand explodes. Alibaba, leveraging its infrastructure and model advantages, is projected to see a 45% upside, with the high-margin MaaS model set to become the engine for valuation re-rating.

Among other blue chips, WuXi Biologics (02269) rose 5.24% to HK$48.58, contributing 14.54 points to the Hang Seng Index. J&T Express-W (01519) advanced 4.83% to HK$10.3, adding 4.18 points. On the downside, China Life Insurance (02628) fell 3.93% to HK$26.88, dragging the index by 12.51 points, while CMOC Group (03993) declined 3.12% to HK$17.09, weighing on the index by 3.17 points.

Sector movements

Most large tech stocks traded in the red, with Alibaba bucking the trend to gain over 3%. Pork prices have recently firmed, boosting pork-related concepts against the broader market decline, with Muyuan Foods (02714) rising over 4%. CRO concepts strengthened again, as AIDD catalyzed strong growth in life sciences businesses, with GenScript Biotech (01548) surging over 8%. Robot concepts were active ahead of Unitree's upcoming listing. Oil and gas stocks, livestock companies, and some mainland property developers also moved higher. On the other side, storage concepts, PCB concepts, and semiconductor-related tech stocks led the declines.

Pork concept leads gains

By the close, Muyuan Foods (02714) was up 4.56% at HK$34.84, COFCO Joycome (01610) rose 4.09% to HK$1.145, and DeKon Food and Agriculture (02419) gained 3.72% to HK$53. The domestic live hog market continues to strengthen, with the latest average price reaching RMB 10.86 per kilogram, up 4.22% week-on-week. Prices in Hubei, Jiangxi, Beijing, and other regions have broken through the RMB 11 per kilogram threshold. According to a research report from ABC International Securities, the low-price regions of Sichuan and Chongqing are leading the rally, and the recent stabilization and recovery of hog prices in those areas may reflect a significant easing of supply pressure. Great Wall Securities suggests focusing on leading hog producers with cost advantages and stable cash flows, as well as positioning for cycle reversal opportunities amid deepening capacity consolidation.

Robot concepts mostly rise

By the close, Estun Automation (02715) jumped 8.43% to HK$20.7, Xiangong Intelligent (06106) rose 6.57% to HK$72.2, Sanhua Intelligent Controls (02050) gained 5.11% to HK$28.38, and Laifu Harmonic (03952) advanced 2.29% to HK$71.5. Unitree Technology is set to officially list on the STAR Market on August 19, with an issue price of RMB 150.8 per share and a market value at listing of approximately RMB 60.993 billion. Market analysts point out that as the first A-share listed humanoid robot company, its listing is seen as a critical turning point for China's embodied intelligence industry moving from technological accumulation to scaled commercialization, providing a clear valuation anchor for subsequent companies in the queue such as AgiBot and Lehman Robotics. Meanwhile, as a supply chain leader, Unitree is expected to drive technological upgrades across domestic motors, sensors, reducers, and other core supply chain components, building an independent and efficient industrial moat.

Oil and gas stocks active

By the close, China Oilfield Services (02883) rose 5.08% to HK$7.34, PetroChina (00857) gained 2.51% to HK$9.805, and CNOOC (00883) advanced 2.09% to HK$24.42. The temporary ceasefire agreement between the US and Iran signed in June expired on Monday, and US President Donald Trump stated he would not extend the agreement. A senior Iranian official said that if diplomatic efforts fail to reach a permanent arrangement, Iran would shift to a "full-scale offensive" military posture and is prepared to take action against a US naval blockade. Additionally, the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration issued the "15th Five-Year Plan for Oil and Gas Development," targeting domestic oil and gas supply of 440 million tonnes of oil equivalent by 2030, with 20,000 kilometers of new long-distance oil and gas pipelines, bringing the national long-distance pipeline network to 220,000 kilometers.

Notable movers

Star Shine Legend (06683) surged on heavy volume, closing up 34.88% at HK$5.8. In July 2025, the company announced a collaboration with Unitree Technology on the development of quadruped robot dogs and robots, jointly creating IP-driven consumer robot products. In November of the same year, Star Shine Legend further announced that its subsidiary Xingchuangyi would form a 50-50 joint venture with a Unitree subsidiary, named "Yuxing Entertainment."

Chow Sang Sang (00116) issued a profit alert, closing up 19.14% at HK$14.38. The company expects profit attributable to shareholders from continuing operations for the first half to be between HK$2.1 billion and HK$2.2 billion, compared with HK$910 million in the same period of 2025. The improvement is mainly attributed to better sales performance in its retail business segment across major markets, as well as unrealized gains from mark-to-market revaluation of precious metal borrowings.

H World Group-S (01179) traded strongly throughout the day, closing up 11.08% at HK$36.3. The company released its unaudited results for the second quarter and interim period of 2026. Second-quarter revenue reached RMB 7.121 billion, up 10.8% year-on-year, while net profit attributable to H World Group was approximately RMB 1.6 billion, up 2.1% year-on-year. The company raised its full-year guidance, now expecting group revenue growth of 4% to 8%, compared with the previous range of 2% to 6%.

Cowell e Holdings (01415) rose after results, closing up 8.01% at HK$24.8. The company announced first-half revenue of approximately US$1.605 billion, up 18.0% year-on-year, with net profit attributable to equity shareholders of approximately US$89.874 million, up 33.3% year-on-year. The growth was driven by increased customer demand, higher shipments of premium products, and continued optimization of the product mix.

GenScript Biotech (01548) extended its gains, closing up 8.36% at HK$28.26. The company reported first-half revenue of approximately US$404 million, up 27.3% year-on-year, with a net loss attributable to shareholders of US$129 million, narrowing from the prior year. Adjusted net profit was approximately US$62.5 million, up 203.3% year-on-year. CICC noted that GenScript's results beat expectations, primarily driven by strong growth in its life sciences business catalyzed by AIDD and improved operational efficiency.