【TOP STORIES】
1. U.S. July Consumer Price Index (CPI) data came in fully in line with expectations and showed signs of cooling, significantly easing market concerns over Fed rate hikes in the near term. The Dow opened higher, rising over 100 points at one point, but turned soft late in the session, closing down 21.58 points, or 0.04%, at 53770.27 points; the S&P 500 rose 20.3 points, or 0.26%, to 7748.5 points; the Nasdaq advanced 143.04 points, or 0.54%, to 26588.49 points. The China Golden Dragon Index fell by 156 points. The Nikkei opened at 68355 points, unchanged.
2. U.S. July headline CPI annual growth slowed to 3.4%, while core CPI rose 2.5% year-on-year, both down 0.1 percentage points from the previous month. Interest rate futures markets raised the probability of the Fed holding rates steady in September from 54.1% to 61.2%, while the chance of a 25 basis point hike dropped to 38.8%.
3. The U.S. Treasury completed a $42 billion 10-year Treasury note auction on Wednesday, with a high yield of 4.683%, slightly above pre-auction trading levels and the highest since 2007.
4. The U.S. Treasury reported that the federal budget deficit in July surged to $432.3 billion, a year-on-year increase of about 48%, setting a record high for July and the largest single-month deficit since March 2021.
5. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in its latest report lowered its forecast for global oil demand growth in 2026 to 580,000 barrels per day, a further reduction of 200,000 barrels per day from last month's forecast, marking the fourth consecutive month of downward revisions to crude demand outlook due to weakening global macro conditions.
6. U.S.-Iran talks remain deadlocked, while senior military reshuffles in Iran suggest Tehran is preparing for a prolonged regional conflict. The International Energy Agency said oil markets face a supply deficit of 1.8 million barrels per day.
7. The People's Bank of China released its second-quarter monetary policy implementation report, stating it will flexibly and precisely conduct various operations and gradually increase the frequency of overnight reverse repos. The central bank will conduct its first mid-month overnight reverse repo operation this Friday.
8. The yen further approached the 160 level against the dollar, with traders closely watching whether Tokyo authorities will intervene again.
9. Hong Kong denied plans to extend preferential tax treatment for carried interest to self-trading firms, stating that business entities operating for general commercial or industrial purposes do not meet the definition of a 'fund'.
【STOCK HIGHLIGHTS】
Tencent (00700)
- Non-IFRS profit rose 9% year-on-year in Q2, revenue up 11%, both beating expectations
- Spending on AI projects and computing power more than doubled, capital expenditure surged turning free cash flow negative
- Tencent ADR plunged over 5% overnight
Power Assets (00006)
- Interim net profit surged 3.83-fold to HK$14.7 billion, dividend of 78 cents
CK Infrastructure (01038)
- Interim net profit rose 3.89-fold to HK$21.25 billion, dividend increased to 75 cents
Property stocks: New World (00017), Sun Hung Kai (00016), Kowloon Development (01997)
- U.S. July CPI inflation cools, probability of no Fed rate hike in September rises to 60%
Chip stocks: SMIC (00981), Hua Hong Semiconductor (01347), ASMPT (00522)AI infrastructure concept: Yangtze Optical Fibre and Cable (06869), Kingboard Laminate (01888), GDS Holdings (09698)
- AI cloud computing infrastructure provider CoreWeave (US.CRWV) set revenue records for five consecutive quarters, shares surged 19.3%
19.3%
- Nasdaq closed higher, Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rose nearly 2.5%
China Resources Land (01109)
- July sales rose 6% to RMB 14.1 billion, year-to-date sales up 5.7%
CSPC Pharmaceutical Group (01093)
- Received $30 million upfront payment from AstraZeneca, accelerating development of its small nucleic acid pipeline
Pop Mart (09992)
- Renowned investor Duan Yongping increased stake in Pop Mart to 7.70%
DeepTech (01384)
- Plans to raise nearly RMB 500 million via a share placement at a discount of about 4% for R&D of enterprise AI and intelligent agent platforms
Akeso (09926)
- Evoluscept received approval in mainland China for new drug application as first-line treatment for advanced squamous non-small cell lung cancer
Bluecom (00325)
- Interim profit rose 31% to RMB 380 million, revenue up 30%, dividend of 32.47 HK cents
【OIL & GOLD PRICES】
NYMEX crude oil down 0.90%, at $82.52/barrel
Brent crude oil down 0.09%, at $88.29/barrel
Spot gold up 0.04%, at $4410.51/ounce
Gold futures up 0.24%, at $4478.26/ounce
1. U.S. July Consumer Price Index (CPI) data came in fully in line with expectations and showed signs of cooling, significantly easing market concerns over Fed rate hikes in the near term. The Dow opened higher, rising over 100 points at one point, but turned soft late in the session, closing down 21.58 points, or 0.04%, at 53770.27 points; the S&P 500 rose 20.3 points, or 0.26%, to 7748.5 points; the Nasdaq advanced 143.04 points, or 0.54%, to 26588.49 points. The China Golden Dragon Index fell by 156 points. The Nikkei opened at 68355 points, unchanged.
2. U.S. July headline CPI annual growth slowed to 3.4%, while core CPI rose 2.5% year-on-year, both down 0.1 percentage points from the previous month. Interest rate futures markets raised the probability of the Fed holding rates steady in September from 54.1% to 61.2%, while the chance of a 25 basis point hike dropped to 38.8%.
3. The U.S. Treasury completed a $42 billion 10-year Treasury note auction on Wednesday, with a high yield of 4.683%, slightly above pre-auction trading levels and the highest since 2007.
4. The U.S. Treasury reported that the federal budget deficit in July surged to $432.3 billion, a year-on-year increase of about 48%, setting a record high for July and the largest single-month deficit since March 2021.
5. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in its latest report lowered its forecast for global oil demand growth in 2026 to 580,000 barrels per day, a further reduction of 200,000 barrels per day from last month's forecast, marking the fourth consecutive month of downward revisions to crude demand outlook due to weakening global macro conditions.
6. U.S.-Iran talks remain deadlocked, while senior military reshuffles in Iran suggest Tehran is preparing for a prolonged regional conflict. The International Energy Agency said oil markets face a supply deficit of 1.8 million barrels per day.
7. The People's Bank of China released its second-quarter monetary policy implementation report, stating it will flexibly and precisely conduct various operations and gradually increase the frequency of overnight reverse repos. The central bank will conduct its first mid-month overnight reverse repo operation this Friday.
8. The yen further approached the 160 level against the dollar, with traders closely watching whether Tokyo authorities will intervene again.
9. Hong Kong denied plans to extend preferential tax treatment for carried interest to self-trading firms, stating that business entities operating for general commercial or industrial purposes do not meet the definition of a 'fund'.
【STOCK HIGHLIGHTS】
Tencent (00700)
- Non-IFRS profit rose 9% year-on-year in Q2, revenue up 11%, both beating expectations
- Spending on AI projects and computing power more than doubled, capital expenditure surged turning free cash flow negative
- Tencent ADR plunged over 5% overnight
Power Assets (00006)
- Interim net profit surged 3.83-fold to HK$14.7 billion, dividend of 78 cents
CK Infrastructure (01038)
- Interim net profit rose 3.89-fold to HK$21.25 billion, dividend increased to 75 cents
Property stocks: New World (00017), Sun Hung Kai (00016), Kowloon Development (01997)
- U.S. July CPI inflation cools, probability of no Fed rate hike in September rises to 60%
Chip stocks: SMIC (00981), Hua Hong Semiconductor (01347), ASMPT (00522)AI infrastructure concept: Yangtze Optical Fibre and Cable (06869), Kingboard Laminate (01888), GDS Holdings (09698)
- AI cloud computing infrastructure provider CoreWeave (US.CRWV) set revenue records for five consecutive quarters, shares surged 19.3%
19.3%
- Nasdaq closed higher, Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rose nearly 2.5%
China Resources Land (01109)
- July sales rose 6% to RMB 14.1 billion, year-to-date sales up 5.7%
CSPC Pharmaceutical Group (01093)
- Received $30 million upfront payment from AstraZeneca, accelerating development of its small nucleic acid pipeline
Pop Mart (09992)
- Renowned investor Duan Yongping increased stake in Pop Mart to 7.70%
DeepTech (01384)
- Plans to raise nearly RMB 500 million via a share placement at a discount of about 4% for R&D of enterprise AI and intelligent agent platforms
Akeso (09926)
- Evoluscept received approval in mainland China for new drug application as first-line treatment for advanced squamous non-small cell lung cancer
Bluecom (00325)
- Interim profit rose 31% to RMB 380 million, revenue up 30%, dividend of 32.47 HK cents
【OIL & GOLD PRICES】
NYMEX crude oil down 0.90%, at $82.52/barrel
Brent crude oil down 0.09%, at $88.29/barrel
Spot gold up 0.04%, at $4410.51/ounce
Gold futures up 0.24%, at $4478.26/ounce