Hong Kong Stock Market Morning Report | Multiple countries' production cuts push crude oil futures above $110 | Central banks increase gold holdings for the 16th consecutive month

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1. At the press conference on the fourth session of the 14th National People’s Congress, Zheng Shanjie, Director of the National Development and Reform Commission, stated that the output value of six emerging pillar industries—integrated circuits, aerospace, biomedicine, and others—is expected to expand to over 10 trillion yuan by 2030. In fields such as integrated circuits, satellite internet, domestically produced large aircraft, and the national integrated computing power network, a batch of long-chain, large-scale major projects will be built, with investment scales reaching hundreds of billions or even trillions of yuan. The “Artificial Intelligence+” initiative will be deepened, and by the end of the 14th Five-Year Plan, the scale of AI-related industries will grow to over 10 trillion yuan.

2. People’s Bank of China Governor Pan Gongsheng stated that this year, a flexible and efficient use of monetary policy tools such as reserve requirement ratio cuts and interest rate reductions will be employed. China does not need or intend to gain a trade advantage through currency devaluation. Good implementation of policies supporting the capital market will be carried out, and the China Central Gold and Silver Exchange will be supported to play a role similar to a stabilization fund. Additionally, Pan Gongsheng mentioned that the central bank will implement a moderately loose monetary policy to keep social financing conditions relatively relaxed.

3. According to data from the People’s Bank of China, as of the end of February, gold reserves stood at 74.22 million ounces, an increase of 30,000 ounces from the previous month, which was 74.19 million ounces. This marks the 16th consecutive month of gold accumulation.

4. Due to ongoing conflicts, oil transportation in the Middle East remains disrupted. Major oil-producing countries such as Iraq and Qatar have announced production cuts, leading to a continuous increase in international oil prices. WTI crude futures rose to $110 per barrel, currently at $111.0 per barrel, up 22.11% intraday. Brent crude futures also reached $110 per barrel, currently at $110.263, up 18.96% intraday. Media reports indicate that Iran’s Supreme Leader has been succeeded by his son. Barclays warns that if the Middle East situation persists for several more weeks, Brent crude could test $120 per barrel.

5. According to the relevant provisions of the Shenzhen Stock Exchange’s Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect Business Implementation Measures, the list of eligible securities for the Stock Connect will be adjusted and take effect from March 9, 2026. The adjustments include the addition of Lead Intelligent, Dipu Technology, Yao Cai Securities Finance, JD Industrial, and others, and the removal of Beijing Capital Airport Co., Shenzhou Holdings, Beijing Automotive, Midea Real Estate, and others.

Global Markets

Last Friday, the three major U.S. stock indices all declined, with oil prices soaring sharply and weaker-than-expected employment data fueling market concerns.

At the close, the Dow fell 0.95%, the Nasdaq dropped 1.59%, and the S&P 500 declined 1.33%. Large tech stocks mostly fell, with Intel down over 5%, Nvidia down 3%, Amazon, Tesla, and Meta each dropping over 2%.

Popular Chinese concept stocks rebounded strongly, with the Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index initially up 0.7%. JD.com rose 6.1%, Xiaomi gained 3%, Meituan and Tencent each increased over 2%, and Alibaba rose 0.4%.

In Hong Kong stocks, all three major indices rebounded last Friday. The Hang Seng Tech Index rose 3.15%, the Hang Seng Index and the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index increased by 1.72% and 2.09%, respectively. Sector-wise, biomedicine, internet technology, and robotics sectors were active, while non-ferrous metals and gold stocks faced pressure.