[ET Net News Agency, 03 August 2026] The US and Iran are expected to start talks today, with external sentiment turning positive. Coupled with Japan and Korea AI hardware stocks continuing to face sell-offs which drove a market rotation, the Hong Kong stock market opened higher driven by tech stocks, surging at one point to 26,133 points. Not only did it return above the 26,000 level, but it also hit a two-and-a-half-month high, leaving bear warrants suffering heavy losses. As of the previous day, there were over 1,400 bear warrants deployed in the HSI 25,900 to 26,099 range. After the bulls launched a massive bear raid and called it a day, the HSI's morning gain narrowed to 11 points, closing at 25,895. Main board turnover was nearly HKD 142.7 billion, and southbound net inflows were nearly HKD 4.5 billion. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index stood at 8,622, up 10 points or 0.1%. The Hang Seng Tech Index stood at 4,864, up 35 points or 0.7%.
Tech stocks maintained their strength today, and although the HSI briefly broke through the 26,000 mark in early trading, heavy resistance at high levels caused the gains to narrow rapidly. Ng Lai Yin, a securities strategist at Everbright Securities, told ET Net News Agency that after accumulating substantial gains in July, the HSI will face greater resistance in August. In addition, although the US-Iran situation has eased slightly, it remains unclear, adding to the selling pressure above Hong Kong stocks; coupled with increased volatility in Asia-Pacific stock markets (such as Korean stocks) recently, and heavy-weight tech stocks such as Tencent (00700) and Xiaomi (01810) about to release their earnings, market wait-and-see sentiment is strong. The broader market is expected to trade in a narrow range in the short term, capped by the 26,000 level, with downside support seen around the previous platform area of about 25,000 points.
"Market eyes HSBC resuming buyback"
HSBC (00005) will release its interim results tomorrow (4th). Ng Lai Yin expects HSBC's results to be decent. Referring to Standard Chartered's (02888) ideal results last week, where the two share a high overlap in business, he estimates that HSBC's net interest and non-interest income will also maintain good growth. He also mentioned that following Standard Chartered's earnings release last Friday, HSBC's share price simultaneously hit a record high, reflecting market anticipation for HSBC's results. When HSBC initiated the privatization of Hang Seng Bank last year, it stated it would suspend share buybacks for the next three quarters. The market is now looking forward to whether HSBC will resume its buyback programme. If the buyback materializes, it is believed it will provide significant support to its share price.
As the most important aspect for major bank stocks is whether non-interest business growth momentum can remain strong, and given that current global stock market performance remains relatively robust, Ng Lai Yin believes HSBC has potential for further upside and continued upward development under strong operational fundamentals. He stated that if HSBC's results are in line and it resumes buybacks, its share price is expected to break above HKD 170, or even near HKD 175.
"Medium to long-term bullish on property market recovery"
Recently, the Hang Lung group announced its interim results. Hang Lung Group (00010) recorded a net profit of HKD 746 million for the six months ended 30 June 2026, up 7.03% year-on-year, with basic earnings per share of 55 cents, an increase of 7.84% compared to the same period last year; an interim dividend of 21 cents was maintained. Hang Lung PPT (00101) recorded an interim net profit of HKD 758 million, down 16.9% year-on-year.
Ng Lai Yin stated that the local property market continues to recover, with property prices accumulating a 10% increase this year, which is expected to support the fundamentals of the property sector. He is bullish on the industry's recovery in the medium to long term; however, in the short term, property stocks will still face pressure due to market concerns over heating expectations of Federal Reserve interest rate hikes. He expects the share price performance of the Hang Lung group to be mainly sideways in the near term, with downside support for Hang Lung PPT seen at its recent low of around HKD 6.85, and resistance seen near its mid-June high of around HKD 8; as for Hang Lung Group, it will hover around HKD 14.10.
However, when deploying in property stocks, Ng Lai Yin believes he would prioritize larger property stocks, such as SHK PPT (00016), which are expected to benefit more from the recovery of Hong Kong's property market. Ng Lai Yin stated that SHK PPT's share price has pulled back since mid-May and has been hovering around HKD 120. At the current level, the share price is already attractive. He suggests waiting for the share price to pull back further below HKD 120 before deploying, with an upside target of HKD 135.
Tech stocks maintained their strength today, and although the HSI briefly broke through the 26,000 mark in early trading, heavy resistance at high levels caused the gains to narrow rapidly. Ng Lai Yin, a securities strategist at Everbright Securities, told ET Net News Agency that after accumulating substantial gains in July, the HSI will face greater resistance in August. In addition, although the US-Iran situation has eased slightly, it remains unclear, adding to the selling pressure above Hong Kong stocks; coupled with increased volatility in Asia-Pacific stock markets (such as Korean stocks) recently, and heavy-weight tech stocks such as Tencent (00700) and Xiaomi (01810) about to release their earnings, market wait-and-see sentiment is strong. The broader market is expected to trade in a narrow range in the short term, capped by the 26,000 level, with downside support seen around the previous platform area of about 25,000 points.
"Market eyes HSBC resuming buyback"
HSBC (00005) will release its interim results tomorrow (4th). Ng Lai Yin expects HSBC's results to be decent. Referring to Standard Chartered's (02888) ideal results last week, where the two share a high overlap in business, he estimates that HSBC's net interest and non-interest income will also maintain good growth. He also mentioned that following Standard Chartered's earnings release last Friday, HSBC's share price simultaneously hit a record high, reflecting market anticipation for HSBC's results. When HSBC initiated the privatization of Hang Seng Bank last year, it stated it would suspend share buybacks for the next three quarters. The market is now looking forward to whether HSBC will resume its buyback programme. If the buyback materializes, it is believed it will provide significant support to its share price.
As the most important aspect for major bank stocks is whether non-interest business growth momentum can remain strong, and given that current global stock market performance remains relatively robust, Ng Lai Yin believes HSBC has potential for further upside and continued upward development under strong operational fundamentals. He stated that if HSBC's results are in line and it resumes buybacks, its share price is expected to break above HKD 170, or even near HKD 175.
"Medium to long-term bullish on property market recovery"
Recently, the Hang Lung group announced its interim results. Hang Lung Group (00010) recorded a net profit of HKD 746 million for the six months ended 30 June 2026, up 7.03% year-on-year, with basic earnings per share of 55 cents, an increase of 7.84% compared to the same period last year; an interim dividend of 21 cents was maintained. Hang Lung PPT (00101) recorded an interim net profit of HKD 758 million, down 16.9% year-on-year.
Ng Lai Yin stated that the local property market continues to recover, with property prices accumulating a 10% increase this year, which is expected to support the fundamentals of the property sector. He is bullish on the industry's recovery in the medium to long term; however, in the short term, property stocks will still face pressure due to market concerns over heating expectations of Federal Reserve interest rate hikes. He expects the share price performance of the Hang Lung group to be mainly sideways in the near term, with downside support for Hang Lung PPT seen at its recent low of around HKD 6.85, and resistance seen near its mid-June high of around HKD 8; as for Hang Lung Group, it will hover around HKD 14.10.
However, when deploying in property stocks, Ng Lai Yin believes he would prioritize larger property stocks, such as SHK PPT (00016), which are expected to benefit more from the recovery of Hong Kong's property market. Ng Lai Yin stated that SHK PPT's share price has pulled back since mid-May and has been hovering around HKD 120. At the current level, the share price is already attractive. He suggests waiting for the share price to pull back further below HKD 120 before deploying, with an upside target of HKD 135.
