[ET Net News Agency, 06 February 2026] US stocks saw another round of heavy selling
overnight, with disappointing jobs data and renewed anxiety about AI-related displacement
dragging down sentiment. Leading tech shares continued to fall, with all three main Wall
Street indices closing lower. Precious metals came under intense pressure, as spot silver
plunged as much as 18.1%, and Bitcoin slumped to as low as USD 62,353, its weakest level
since November 2024. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index (HSI) opened over 500 points down,
but gradually pared its losses to end the morning session at 26,580, a drop of 304 points,
or 1.1%. Main board turnover was nearly HKD 139.5 billion. The Hang Seng China Enterprises
Index was down 47 points, or 0.5%, at 9,045, while the Hang Seng Tech Index lost 25
points, or 0.5%, finishing at 5,380.

"Lee Wai Kit: HSI likely to trade in a 26,000 to 27,500 range"

With global assets rattled, the HSI could not escape the risk-off mood, gapping down by
over 500 points at the open before finding support at both its 100-day (around 26,286) and
50-day (around 26,287) moving averages, limiting the day's losses to just over 300 points.
Lee Wai Kit, a financial commentator of TF International, told ET Net News Agency that
adjustment pressures remain high, and investor sentiment is cautious. He expects the HSI
to enter a period of range-bound trading in the absence of significantly negative news,
with deep corrections unlikely. Given thinner trading ahead of the Lunar New Year
holidays, Lee Wai Kit forecasts the HSI will trade between 26,000 and 27,500. He also
noted that previously pressured tech stocks found support today, suggesting a possible
rotation, with tech set to rebound as traditional sectors consolidate.
Despite the index's steep drop, consumer stocks on the Mainland China remained
resilient. Lee Wai Kit highlighted that consumer stocks have generally rebounded since
November last year, boosted by policy support and the seasonal tailwinds of the Lunar New
Year. In an environment of heightened AI disruption, he expects retail names to attract
capital rotation, and sees further upside for the sector in the first quarter. He noted
that appliance stocks, backed by steady medium-to-long-term earnings growth, have
continued to outperform tech shares recently, with Midea Group (00300) worth monitoring
near its 10-day moving average of 86 yuan, and Haier Smart Home (06690) offering a
potential entry point around 26.3 yuan. Within restaurant stocks, he is positive on
Haidilao (06862) and Yum China (09987): Haidilao benefits from founder-led reforms, while
Yum China's latest operating data is promising. For strategy, Lee Wai Kit suggests
accumulating Haidilao if it falls back to the HKD 15.8-16.2 range, and buying Yum China in
tranches if it fills the gap back towards HKD 400.
Even traditional safe-haven assets like gold were not spared amid the broad selloff. Lee
Wai Kit noted that recent sharp corrections in gold prices are closely linked to
speculative spikes that briefly saw gold surge from USD 5,000 to 5,600 in a very short
period. He still sees gold's investment appeal as intact, with the price target for this
year remaining at USD 5,500. The rapid correction after the overshoot suggests the outlook
is stabilising, especially if the US Dollar Index ranges between 96 and 98. Gold is likely
to stay relatively weak for now but not tumble again; strong support exists in the USD
4,500 to 4,800 range, so investors could consider phased buying when prices recover to
that band.

"Wall Street software selloff expected to continue through the month"

The wave of selling in US software stocks has shown little sign of letting up. A report
from data analytics firm S3 Partners highlighted that short sellers have booked USD 24
billion in mark-to-market profits on US software names this year, while the sector's total
market value has shrunk by USD 1 trillion. Lee Wai Kit observed that this correction is
difficult to call timing-wise, as shares continue to fall after earnings regardless of
performance, and the trend will likely persist for at least the rest of the month. He has
noticed a clear rotation into classic consumer names like Coca-Cola and McDonald's. In his
view, only when a software company delivers significantly better-than-expected results,
sparking a reversal in share price, will the sector's negative sentiment start to turn;
for now, there remains no clear sign of that happening.