Chinese Stocks Continue Rally on Media and Tech Gains; Hong Kong Trims Gains Ahead of Lunar New Year Holiday

Beijing | EcoPulse24

Chinese markets continued their upward momentum for a second straight session, buoyed by a surge in media and technology shares following optimism about commercial applications of artificial intelligence. The Shanghai Composite Index closed up 0.13% at 4,128 points, and the Shenzhen Index rose 0.02% to 14,210 points. Media stocks led the rally, spurred by excitement over ByteDance’s latest AI video generation model. Shares of COL Group, Beijing Enlight Media, and Beijing Jebsen Technology each hit their daily upper limit, closing up 20%.

The new Seedance 2.0 model is expected to reduce production costs and technical barriers in AI-driven animation, improving operational efficiency and boosting risk appetite in the sector. Technology, clean energy, and industrial stocks also posted notable gains, including GCL System Integration (+4.4%), Cambricon Technologies (+1.3%), Sungrow Power (+1.4%), Zhejiang Sanhua (+3.3%), and Hengtong Opto-Electric (+7.3%). However, trading volumes began to decline as investors prepared for the week-long Lunar New Year holiday from February 15 to 23.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index rose by about 156 points or 0.6% to close at 27,183, marking its second consecutive session of gains, supported by broad sector advances. Sentiment was lifted by Wall Street’s record Dow Jones close and optimism over travel demand during China’s Lunar New Year holiday. Reports of a possible meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing in April also contributed positively. However, gains were trimmed late in the session as caution returned ahead of China’s consumer and producer price index data due Wednesday.

Stock highlights included Innovent Biologics rising 5% on confidence in reaching 20 billion yuan in revenue by 2027, JF SmartInvest Holdings jumping 9.3% on strong profit expectations, and Axera Semiconductor making a strong debut on the Hong Kong exchange. Conversely, Zhaojin Mining fell 6.3% following reports of a fatal accident at one of its gold mines.

EcoPulse24 Analysis: The performance of Chinese markets reflects a clear shift in capital flows toward AI and digital content sectors, with rising bets on cost reduction and productivity gains, especially in media and entertainment. Meanwhile, the drop in trading volumes signals a seasonal cooling period ahead of the holiday. In Hong Kong, the upward trend remains but with selective momentum, as markets balance global optimism with local caution before key economic data. Limited movement is likely to persist until inflation indicators clarify the outlook for monetary policy and liquidity in the coming weeks.