Hong Kong stocks opened on a mixed note on July 28, with the Hang Seng Index edging up 0.26% and the Hang Seng Tech Index climbing 0.64%. Among notable movers, electric-vehicle maker Li Auto jumped over 3%, while internet giants NetEase and JD. com each advanced more than 2%. On the losing side, jewelry retailer Laopu Gold plunged nearly 13%, and artificial intelligence firms Zhipu and MINIMAX both declined over 5%.
On July 28, futures for the FTSE China A50 Index declined by 1%, widening the loss from previous levels. The FTSE China A50 Index tracks the 50 largest A-share companies listed on the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges. The futures contract, traded on the Singapore Exchange, is a key benchmark for offshore investors. The 1% drop represents a significant move in the index futures during the trading session.
ChangXin Technology, the only Chinese DRAM mass producer, surged 465.82% on its STAR Market debut on July 27, closing at RMB49.00 after opening 471.59% higher at RMB49.50 from an IPO price of RMB8.66 per share. Trading volume hit RMB141.1 billion, a new A-share single-stock daily record. Market capitalization exceeded RMB3.3 trillion, overtaking ICBC, Kweichow Moutai and CATL to become the most valuable A-share company. The memory chip sector rose 3.15%, with Chengdu Huawei and Zhengfan Technology up over 15% and 12%, respectively.
South Korea's benchmark Kospi index fell 8%, triggering a circuit breaker that suspended trading for 20 minutes. The sharp decline prompted market-wide intervention to curb volatility amid global financial pressures.
Positioning in Japanese equities is now more crowded than before the July 2024 rout, when the TOPIX tumbled 24% from its record. Foreign net positions are over 20% higher, while retail margin balances have climbed 35% to near a five-year high. Hedge fund allocations to Japan sit at the 99th percentile of the past five years. TOPIX and Nikkei 225 are up 37% and 53% from July 11, 2024, lifted by banking, metals, electronics and AI exporters, but many names remain below their 200-day moving averages. The macro backdrop has shifted, with the 10-year JGB yield near 3% on fiscal sustainability doubts, yet USD/JPY implied volatility is low, indicating almost no pricing of a sudden yen spike.
FTSE China A50 Index futures opened lower in early trading, dropping 0.4% from the previous day's close, following a night session decline of 0.01%. The move extends a modest pullback in the index futures.
In July, 609 A-share companies were surveyed by institutions, with the electronics sector leading at 98 firms, followed by machinery (79), basic chemicals (58), pharmaceutical and biological (52), and power equipment (43). Sixteen companies received visits from over 100 institutions, and seven from over 200. Separately, 129 companies, including Hengyi Petrochemical and Tinci Materials, forecast net profit growth in the first half of the year.
Changxin Technology surged 465.82% on its STAR Market debut, closing at RMB 49 with a market capitalisation of RMB 3.28 trillion, overtaking ICBC to become A-shares’ largest stock by value. Full-day turnover hit a record RMB 141.1 billion. The IPO, the largest in the STAR Market’s history, attracted 9.43 million investors for a 0.4714% allocation rate. Employee share plans priced at RMB 0.1 created over 200 millionaires on the first day. Strategic investors Country Garden, Hefei state-owned capital and Alibaba affiliates notched paper gains of tens of billions to over a trillion yuan.
On July 28, South Korea's KOSPI index tumbled 7 percent to close at 6268.41 points, driven by steep losses in technology stocks. SK Hynix plunged more than 10 percent, and Samsung Electronics fell over 8 percent, dragging the broader market lower.
South Korea's benchmark KOSPI index fell 7% in intraday trading, with losses accelerating. SK Hynix shares plunged 10% and Samsung Electronics shares dropped more than 8%, dragging the index lower. The sell-off reflects broad weakness in the technology sector.
As of July 27, 390 A-share listed companies had disclosed equity incentive plans in 2025, a 20.74% year-on-year increase, with 432 plans in total, up 18.03%. Electronics, machinery, and power equipment sectors accounted for over 45% of plans. Light manufacturing surged 400%, social services 280%, and non-ferrous metals 200%. Sun Paper granted 63 million restricted shares (2.25% of total) with 2026-2028 profit growth targets of 10%, 20%, and 30%. Performance metrics are shifting from profit to product shipments, clinical trials, overseas revenue, and relative market cap.
Micron Technology shares opened 3.06% lower at $876.645, pushing its market capitalization below $1 trillion to $990.1 billion, about 31% below its record high. The memory chipmaker faces rapid technology shifts and intense competition. Its HBM4 36GB 12H product has entered mass production, with pin speeds over 11Gb/s and bandwidth of 2.8TB/s, custom-built for Nvidia's Vera Rubin platform. However, Micron's supply share for that platform is only 5% to 10%.
The Nikkei 225 index fell 3% in intraday trading, breaching the 63,000-point level. The decline intensified during the session, with the index dropping below the key threshold. The move extends the benchmark's losses for the day.
SK Hynix’s American depositary receipts fell below their offering price on Monday, closing at $143.02, down 4% from the $149 IPO price. The stock hit an intraday low of $139.01, a drop of 10%. The South Korean memory chip maker joins SpaceX as another large US IPO this year to trade below its issue price.
South Korea's benchmark KOSPI index dropped 6% in a single trading session, reflecting a sharp decline in the market. The index tracks the performance of major companies listed on the Korea Exchange.
Chinese equities rebounded on July 27, with the three major indices closing higher. Power, innovative drugs, brain-computer interface, AI applications, humanoid robots, and PCB concepts led gains, while oil and gas sectors declined. The non-money ETF market saw net inflows of 34.88 billion RMB into Southern CSI 500 ETF, 29.86 billion into Southern CSI 1000 ETF, and 18.26 billion into China AMC SSE STAR Semiconductor Materials Equipment ETF. Total ETF market scale reached 49,091.92 billion RMB. The SCI STAR Semiconductor Materials Equipment index posted the highest return of 16.68% over the past week.
On July 28, nine A-share companies disclosed private placement plans, with Lude Technology proposing to raise up to RMB 152 million. So far this year, 104 firms have completed private placements, including Air China and China Shenhua, each raising RMB 20 billion.
Changxin Memory Technology (CXMT) surged over 455% on its STAR Market debut on July 27, reaching a market capitalization of more than RMB 3.5 trillion. Alibaba, which invested about RMB 7.6 billion for a nearly 5% stake, saw its holding valued at over RMB 170 billion. The listing highlights Alibaba's strategic shift toward AI investments, having deployed around RMB 36 billion across 29 AI companies by July 2026, while divesting non-core assets.
Active equity funds increased their holdings of 34 brokerage stocks in the second quarter of 2026, concentrating on top investment banks and internet brokerages, according to mutual fund Q2 reports. Separately, several securities firms have recently announced share buyback plans, and state-owned shareholders have also made significant additional purchases.
Changxin Technology (688825. SH) debuted on the A-share market in July 2026, closing at RMB 49, up 4.66 times from its IPO price, giving it a market capitalization of RMB 3.28 trillion and making it the largest A-share company by market cap, surpassing Industrial and Commercial Bank of China. The stock has no price limits for the first five trading days. In the broader market, the ChiNext Index rose 35.6% in the first half of 2026 but has fallen 17.3% since July. The Shanghai Composite Index has erased its year-to-date gain of about 7%, while the CSI300 is up about 1.6% year to date. After a sharp decline in late June, 'national team' funds stepped in last week, slowing the downturn.
On July 27, five A-share listed companies—PuLian Software, Xintian Technology, Jiayun Technology, Beiken Energy, and Lianchuang Electronics—were suspended from trading as they planned changes in control. Company announcements show that actual controllers are transferring their equity stakes, with some planning to fully exit. The concentration of multiple listed companies planning control changes indicates a warming of the shell trading in the capital market.
US major stock indexes closed mixed on the day, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average rising 0.51% and the S&P 500 edging up 0.02%, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.18%. Apple gained more than 1% to a new record, pushing its market capitalization close to $5 trillion. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index dropped over 2%, and the Nasdaq China Golden Dragon Index advanced 2.51%.
Changxin Technology made a historic STAR Market debut, opening at RMB49.50 for a 471.59% surge and a market cap of RMB3.31 trillion, unseating ICBC as the A-share market’s most valuable company. Full-day turnover reached a record RMB141.2 billion, the first time an A-share stock topped RMB100 billion in a single session. The IPO raised RMB57.919 billion, a STAR Market record. In Q1 2026, revenue jumped 719% to RMB50.8 billion and adjusted net profit soared 1,993% to over RMB26.3 billion. The Beijing Stock Exchange also saw Weiqi Technology surge as much as 825.09% before closing 599.5% higher. All 83 IPOs this year have gained on day one, with no breaks.
U. S. stocks closed mixed on July 27, with the S&P 500 edging up 0.02% to 7,413.18, the Nasdaq Composite falling 0.18% to 24,932.08, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rising 0.51% to 52,210.08. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index dropped 2.23%, led by a 4.99% decline in Nvidia amid concerns over its 'cyclical financing' and a $250 billion guarantee for OpenAI. Apple rose 1.17% to a market value of $4.95 trillion, surpassing Nvidia ($4.76 trillion) as the world's most valuable company. The index of Chinese stocks listed in the U. gained 2.51%.
SpaceX's market capitalization has lost more than $1.2 trillion from its June 2026 high of $225.64, nearing Tesla's market cap. The stock fell over 1% on Monday to close at $113.50, its 13th decline in 16 sessions. Options trading saw 106,000 calls and 77,000 puts, with most premium from puts, and the most active call had a 0.33% probability of profit. The first post-IPO earnings report is due next week, after which investors can sell up to 911.5 million locked shares on August 6.
Chip stocks fell broadly in a sell-off. The VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) closed 2.25% lower. Among individual issues, SanDisk tumbled 11.02%, SK Hynix dropped 7.47%, AMD declined 5.17%, Teradyne lost 4.33%, Applied Materials slipped 3.61%, KLA shed 3.40%, and Micron Technology gave up 2.25%.
US-listed Chinese stocks posted broad gains on Tuesday, with Futu Holdings surging 4.94% to lead the advance. Other notable risers included Li Auto (4.13%), Bilibili (4.02%), Alibaba (2.55%), and JD. com (2.52%). Among decliners, Baidu edged down 0.05%.
In the latest trading session, US leading technology stocks ended mixed. Google advanced 2.13%, Microsoft 1.94%, Apple 1.17%, and Netflix 0.44%. On the downside, Nvidia dropped 4.99%, SpaceX 1.36%, Tesla 1.22%, Amazon 0.31%, and Meta 0.22%. The session saw a split between gainers and decliners among the group.
U. S. stocks closed mixed on the day, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average rising 262.83 points, or 0.51%, to 52,210.08. The Nasdaq Composite fell 43.74 points, or 0.18%, to 24,932.08. The S&P 500 edged up 1.20 points, or 0.02%, to 7,413.18.
Major chip stocks including Micron Technology and Nvidia fell sharply on Monday, while Apple bucked the trend. Nvidia dropped 4.99%, Micron slid 2.25%, and SanDisk tumbled 11.02%. Apple rose 1.17%, bringing its market capitalization close to $5 trillion. SK Hynix fell 7.47% to a record low. Separately, the White House distributed a draft AI regulatory framework to OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google, with a deadline of August 1.