China online retail companies’ 4Q25 revenue and margins were pressured by the high-base effect and the persistently intense on-demand delivery competition, which are likely to ease in 2026, seeing the solid NBS retail data for Jan-Feb 26, and the latest policy. Meanwhile, online gaming and OTA reported resilient 4Q25 top-line growth and continuous margin improvement, empowered by improved AI efficiency and benign competition. We expect improving AI monetisation and mixed earnings as AI investmen...
Chinese equities consolidated further in March amid outbreak of hostilities in the Middle East, with the HSI and MSCI China Index declining 6.9% mom and 7.5% mom respectively. We expect markets to stay volatile in April, though oversold rebounds are possible. We continue to focus on names with stronger fundamentals and remain buyers of tech names, adding Li Ning and Zijin Mining to our BUY list while taking profits on Ganfeng Lithium and cutting losses on LINK REIT.
Alibaba’s 3QFY26 earnings missed expectations. Revenue grew 1.7% yoy to Rmb284.8b (15% like-for-like basis), in line with the street’s estimate. Non-GAAP net profit was Rmb16.7b, down 44% yoy, missing our forecast, due to its investment in Taobao Instant Commerce. In 4QFY26, management expects: a) a significant narrowing of quick commerce losses, b) a recovery in CMR growth and profitability, and c) continued strong growth in cloud revenue. Maintain BUY with a lower target price of HK$192.00 (US...
Top Stories Company Results | AAC Technologies (2018 HK/BUY/HK$34.30/Target: HK$41.00) AAC's 2H25 earnings registered a solid 8.7%/4.1% beat vs our/consensus estimates on better opex control and lower finance costs. Management remained optimistic on its diversified business, guiding steady margin improvements and revenue growth of mid-teens or above for most segments in 2026. Maintain BUY and keep target price at HK$41.00. Company Results | AIA Group (1299 HK/BUY/HK$82.80/Target: HK$109.00) AI...
Greater China Company Results | AAC Technologies (2018 HK/BUY/HK$34.30/Target: HK$41.00) AAC's 2H25 earnings registered a solid 8.7%/4.1% beat vs our/consensus estimates on the back of better opex control and lower finance costs. Management remained optimistic on its diversified business, guiding for steady margin improvements and revenue growth of mid-teens or above for most segments in 2026. Maintain BUY and keep target price at HK$41.00. Company Results | AIA Group (1299 HK/BUY/HK$82.80...
Chinese equities consolidated further in February, with the HSI and MSCI China Index declining 2.8% mom and 5.6% mom, respectively. March is expected to be volatile, as there are signs that the Middle East conflict could last for a while. We focus on names which have greater domestic exposure, adding Anta, China Duty Free, FII, Futu, Kuaishou and Tencent to our BUY list.
Greater China Economics | China Investors expect the NPC to set a 2026 real GDP growth target of 4.5-5.0% yoy, with policy support led primarily by fiscal measures while monetary easing remains complementary. The official deficit is likely capped at 4%, though augmented fiscal expansion via special bond issuance will provide additional support. The 15th Five-Year Plan is expected to prioritise hard-tech self-reliance, advanced manufacturing and curbing industrial involution, with only target...
Chinese equities recovered in January, with the HSI and MSCI China rising 6.9% and 5.0% mom respectively. Given the supportive macro policy environment, we maintain a constructive view on the markets despite the risk of further volatility in February. Accordingly, we are adding Alibaba, Ganfeng Lithium, and Minth to our BUY list, and Meituan to our SELL list.
Greater China Strategy | Alpha Picks: February Conviction Calls Chinese equities recovered in January, with the HSI and MSCI China rising 6.9% and 5.0% mom, respectively. Given the supportive macro policy environment, we maintain a constructive view on the markets despite risk of further volatility in February. Accordingly, we are adding Alibaba, Ganfeng Lithium, and Minth to our BUY list, while adding Meituan to our SELL list. Indonesia Company Results | Bank Negara Indonesia (BBNI IJ/B...
To-C applications growth is accelerating among mega-cap players with super apps, while emerging unicorns focus on To- B and To-prosumers in specific AI scenarios/verticals and on physical AI in verticals such as mobility and smartphone. For the next 6-12 months, we are eyeing key AI narratives: a) rollout of super apps leveraging on agentic AI, b) leading LLMs in specific verticals unlocking monetisation potential, and c) key drivers of cloud revenue growth. Maintain OVERWEIGHT. Top BUYs: Baidu,...
Highlights To-C applications growth is accelerating among mega-cap players with super apps, while emerging unicorns focus on To-B and To-prosumers in specific AI scenarios/verticals and on physical AI in verticals such as mobility and smartphone. For the next 6-12 months, we are eyeing key AI narratives: a) roll-out of super apps leveraging on agentic AI, b) leading LLMs in specific verticals unlocking monetisation potential, and c) key drivers of cloud revenue growth. Over time, we expect fur...
Greater China Economics | PMI January PMI was below Bloomberg’s consensus, as the manufacturing PMI dipped to 49.2 (-0.9pt mom). The manufacturing output sub-index stayed marginally expansionary, while the new orders and new export orders sub-indices weakened. The purchase prices sub-index surged, pointing to higher cost pressure for manufacturers. The non-manufacturing PMI also fell to 49.4 (-0.8pt mom), mainly driven by a sharp contraction in the construction industry index. Large enterpri...
We expect Alibaba to report lacklustre 3QFY26 results but expect a gradual margin recovery on softer investment in instant delivery competition. We are cautiously optimistic on Alibaba’s core commerce business due to the high base last year and ongoing competition. Nevertheless, we are sanguine on its cloud strategy, which will position the company well to become a technology platform centred on AI + Cloud with long-term strategic value and growth flywheel. Maintain BUY with an unchanged target ...
Top Stories Sector Update | China Property Demand remained under pressure in Jan 26, with both new-home sales and secondary-home transactions continuing to post sharp yoy declines. Land market activity weakened notably towards the end of 2025, while capital and demand were further concentrated in a small number of strong Tier 1-2 cities, underscoring persistent divergence across regions amid still-soft market sentiment. We remain UNDERWEIGHT on China’s property sector, and expect high policy vo...
Greater China Sector Update | China Property Demand remained under pressure in Jan 26, with both new-home sales and secondary-home transactions continuing to post sharp yoy declines. Land market activity weakened notably toward the end of 2025, while capital and demand were further concentrated in a small number of strong Tier 1-2 cities, underscoring persistent divergence across regions amid still-soft market sentiment. We remain UNDERWEIGHT on China’s property sector, and expect high polic...
We reckon that the AI wave is driven by key themes including: a) recurring AI LLM/applications and cloud revenue growth, and b) a wider deployment of proprietary and data driven AI agents by vertical players to strengthen competitive moats. Amid an uncertain competitive backdrop, we opine that cloud hyper-scalers are key beneficiaries underpinned by their ecosystem scale and technological capabilities, underscoring growing investor confidence in the AI-driven sector’s re-rating. Maintain OVERWEI...
Greater China Economics | Inflation December CPI inflation rose to 0.8% yoy (+0.1ppt mom), the strongest reading ytd, with a sharp rebound in food prices. Core CPI remained at 1.2% yoy, the highest level for 2025, with goods inflation strengthening further while services inflation continued to ease slightly. PPI deflation moderated to 1.9% yoy (+0.3ppt mom), supported by improvements in mining and consumer goods pricing. Overall, the data suggests tentative price stabilisation, although defl...
China’s internet companies reported resilient 3Q25 top-line growth and continuous margin improvement in the online gaming and OTA sectors, empowered by improved AI efficiency and benign competition. Margin pressure in e-commerce due to the intense on-demand delivery competition is likely to ease in 4Q25, but could persist into 2026 given the continuous investment and tough comparison base boosted by the trade-in programme in 2025. Maintain MARKET WEIGHT. Top BUYs: Alibaba, Tencent, TCOM, TME, Ne...
Greater China Sector Update | Consumer We met investors in Thailand and Malaysia during our marketing trip from 24-28 Nov 25. Overall investor interest in the China consumer sector is improving. The most frequently discussed segments and names include Miniso, Shenzhou, Anta, consumer staples (including dairy, beer and baijiu), as well as some new consumption names such as Pop Mart (non-rated) and Laopu Gold (non-rated). Our preferred stocks include: Galaxy, Midea, Miniso, Shenzhou and Sands ...
Highlights We expect global liquidity cycle to remain strong for at least 1H26, following the Fed’s return to policy easing in Sep 25, benefitting emerging market assets and commodities. Chinese equities are likely to rally further, and our index target for MSCI China index target is at 104 pts based on 16.3x 12-month forward PE and 6% EPS growth assumption. We prefer exposure to growth industries like AI/semiconductors, automation/robotics, ADAS and innovative drugs and liquidity proxies ...
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