Market Insights: April 12th, 2024

Performance of A-Shares:

• On Friday, the three major A-share indices experienced mixed openings: the Shanghai Composite opened 0.04% higher, the Shenzhen Component Index opened flat at 0.00%, and the ChiNext Index opened 0.06% lower.
• There was a clear divergence in the performance of different sectors; gold concepts and auto dismantling sectors led the gains, while AI materials and solid-state batteries were among the sectors that saw the largest drops.
• Certain companies stood out in their performance, with Beiken Energy hitting the upper limit, Zhaojin Mining rising nearly 5%, and potential gem shares such as Quan Oil Stock and Tongyuan Petroleum surged by more than 5%.

Performance of Hong Kong Stocks:

• Hong Kong stocks had a lower opening and continued to decline, with the Hang Seng Index falling by 1.36% and the Hang Seng Technology Index dropping by 0.88%.
• Gold stocks were active with Zhaojin Mining rising close to 5%.
• Specific companies' scenarios: Xinji Shaxi’s stock resumed trading with an almost 70% increase, after a previous plunge of 85%; forcibly sold shares amounted to 14.16% holdings by the controlling shareholder.

US Stock Performance:

• The 'Mag 7', including Apple, Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Nvidia, Meta, and Tesla, are expected to see a 38% increase in profits for the first quarter of 2024.
• Google is nearing a $2 trillion market value, Amazon's stock price hits a record high, and Apple's stock price surged by 4.3%, adding $112 billion to its market value in a single day.

Bond Market:

• The main contracts of 30-year, 10-year, 5-year, and 2-year bonds showed increases ranging from 0.04% to 0.37%.

Technology Industry:

• The M4 chip will emphasize its AI capabilities, with the first Macs equipped with the M4 chip expected to be released by the end of 2024. Early 2025 will see more new products, including the brand-new Mac Studio and Mac Pro.
• Apple’s stock price experienced a rare surge, rising by 4.3% and increasing its market value by $112 billion in a single day.

US Treasury Yields:

• For the first time in nearly five months, the yield on 2-year US Treasury notes broke above 5.0% during trading.

Currency Performance:

• The US dollar index, Euro and Japanese Yen performances saw the Euro hitting a two-month low and the Yen reaching its lowest since 1990.

Financing Transactions:

• The reactivation of the suspension button for adding new short sales as multiple brokers temporarily stop adding new short sale sources.
• The balance of short sales has dropped nearly 40% since the beginning of the year, making short sale transactions progressively more active.

IMF Outlook:

• The IMF plans to slightly increase its forecast for global economic growth, which remains well below the historical average.
• The IMF Managing Director also issued a warning that inflation issues have not been fully resolved and that the debt levels in most countries are quite high. This could lead to a situation where the global economy faces slow and disappointing growth over the next decade.

International Precious Metals Market:

• International precious metals continued to rally, with spot gold rising by 1.7% and spot silver by more than 2%.

Hong Kong New Stocks:

• Up to April 11 this year, only 12 new stocks have been listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, with a total fundraising amount of HK$47.3 billion. The number and fundraising amount of initial public offerings (IPOs) have hit a new low in nearly a decade.