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Markets

Can China’s flash memory giant YMTC smash Shanghai Star Market IPO records?

IPO funds to fuel YMTC parent CCSH’s expansion, with nearly US$5 billion set aside to boost chipmaking capacity and accelerate R&D CCSH Corporation, parent of China’s top NAND flash maker, planned to sell between 1.98 billion and 2.43 billion shares, equivalent to 10 to 12 per cent of its enlarged share capital, according to a prospectus made public on Friday. An overallotment option of up to 15 per cent could also be exercised. While the final offer price and total proceeds have yet to be set, the planned size signals a massive fundraising push. CCSH has earmarked 33 billion yuan (US$4.9 billion) specifically for investment projects – 20.8 billion yuan to upgrade mass-production lines and 12.2 billion yuan for research and development. CXMT ultimately raised 66.6 billion yuan, nearly double its baseline plan, in what became the largest Star Market initial public offering on record. YMTC’s final tally could similarly eclipse its baseline 33 billion yuan target depending on final market demand.

August 24, 2026

Markets

Investment market volatility ‘here to stay’ unless global recession strikes: analyst

Rich investors put on notice as AI advancement and geopolitical risks continue to change market structure, causing instability, says Nomura Wealthy investors should be ready for higher volatility “for years” as uncertainties around artificial intelligence development and geopolitical risks are set to persist, according to a major private bank. But volatility came after changes to the market’s structure “over the decades” and was expected to be “here to stay”, said Julia Wang, North Asia chief investment officer of Nomura International Wealth Management, in an interview with the South China Morning Post. While Wang reaffirmed Nomura’s positive outlook on AI and the global economy, AI was one of the key pushes behind the ups and downs. She explained that expectations for outperforming gains from future productivity drivers resulted in crowded trading and leverage, which usually would be followed by market sell-offs.

August 24, 2026

Markets

Building the Future: How BTRi Is Positioning Hong Kong as the Global Gateway for Construction Innovation

Two years on from its establishment, the Building Technology Research Institute (BTRi) has grown into a driving force for construction innovation in Hong Kong. BTRi, a limited company wholly owned by the Financial Secretary Incorporated, collaborates with government departments, universities, industry partners and professional bodies in Hong Kong, the Mainland and overseas. Its approach is two-pronged: accelerating the adoption of innovative technologies and construction solutions, while developing trusted standards and accreditation frameworks that support high-quality technologies and products to "go global” via Hong Kong. [The content of this article has been produced by our advertising partner.] Hong Kong is pursuing its most ambitious development agenda in a generation, led by the Northern Metropolis, with the backing of the Hong Kong’s First Five-Year Plan which proactively aligns with the national development strategies in the National 15th Five-Year Plan. Yet delivering Hong Kong’s development ambitions will require the industry to address long-standing challenges in productivity, cost-effectiveness, quality and safety.

August 24, 2026

Markets

A rural city, once known for livestock, now provides China’s AI computing fuel

For generations, Ulanqab – a city several hundred kilometres northwest of Beijing whose Mongolian name means “red cliff pass” – was known for its windswept pastureland, where cattle grazed and potatoes thrived under long hours of sunlight. Its economy hinged on the weather, driven by the cool, strong breezes sweeping through the Yinshan mountain range. Today, giant wind turbines stand next to livestock across those sloping grasslands. As the global artificial intelligence boom fuels a scramble...

August 24, 2026

Markets

Alibaba sets price in US$10.2b billion new share offer, drops 10% on market open

The firm is set to issue 710 million shares in one of China’s largest AI fundraising efforts The price represented an 8.4 per cent discount to the stock’s closing price in Hong Kong on Friday and a 3.6 per cent discount to the Friday closing price of its New York-listed shares, the company said in a stock exchange filing on Monday. Alibaba is the owner of the South China Morning Post. The 710 million newly issued shares represented around 3.7 per cent of the company’s 19.17 billion total outstanding shares. Shares of the Chinese e-commerce and cloud computing giant fell more than 10 per cent after the market opened. The Chinese e-commerce and AI giant announced the new share sale on Sunday, pledging to spend the entire HK$80 billion in proceeds to “invest in its full-stack AI capabilities” and “extend the company’s global AI leadership”. Several banks had received pre-launch expressions of interest – in excess of the deal size – “on the back of strong interest received from sovereign wealth funds and global long-only investors”, a person familiar with the matter said.

August 24, 2026

Markets

Shein seeks to raise up to US$1.76 billion in Hong Kong initial public offering

Based on maximum offer price, IPO would value online fast-fashion retailer at over US$27 billion Fast-fashion retailer Shein Global Holdings is seeking to raise as much as HK$13.85 billion (US$1.76 billion) in a Hong Kong initial public offering (IPO) that was initially planned four years ago. Shein will sell 279 million shares at HK$47.6 to HK$49.5 each, according to a filing to the city’s stock exchange on Monday. Shein began taking investor orders on Monday, with trading expected to start on September 1. Cornerstone investors – who will get guaranteed allocations in exchange for holding the stock for at least six months – have agreed to buy about US$383 million worth of Shein shares. They include Boyu Capital, Tiger Global, General Atlantic, Tencent Holdings, Greenwoods, Taikang Life and UBS. The cornerstone tranche accounted for up to 22.5 per cent of the total funds to be raised, the online fashion platform said. The IPO would value the company at over US$27 billion, based on the maximum offer price. That would be a significant markdown from its peak valuation of nearly US$100 billion in 2022, as well as its Series D+ funding valuation of around US$64 billion in 2023.

August 24, 2026

Markets

Yuan, Hong Kong dollar bonds surge as issuers seek cheaper funding amid rising US costs

Issuance of dim sum, panda and wonton bonds accelerates as Beijing promotes the yuan’s global use and deeper cross-border access broadens demand Hong Kong and mainland China are set to see continued growth in bond issuance denominated in Hong Kong dollars or the yuan through the rest of the year, as issuers reduce their reliance on US dollar-denominated bonds and seek cheaper funding costs, according to a senior executive at Standard Chartered Bank. “As US dollar funding costs have increased, many bond issuers” have been turning to bonds denominated in other currencies to secure lower borrowing costs, said David Yim Sau-king, head of debt capital markets for Greater China and north Asia at Standard Chartered Bank. “This trend would benefit yuan bonds and Hong Kong dollar bonds.” The yield on the US 30-year Treasury bond reached 5.29 per cent last week, its highest level since 2007. By contrast, the yield on Chinese sovereign bonds was 2.18 per cent on Friday, near the lowest level in more than a year amid slower economic growth. Previously, most international firms focused on issuing US-dollar-denominated bonds because bond markets denominated in other currencies were not sufficiently deep, Yim said.

August 24, 2026

Markets

Hong Kong homebuyers snap up units at The Sterling as value-focused demand deepens

The Sterling residential development drew 46,000-plus subscriptions, highlighting appeal of urban locations with strong transport links as housing recovery matures Hong Kong homebuyers are still willing to spend, and the sell-out of a major new development on Saturday showed how demand is increasingly concentrated in projects that offer clear value as the housing recovery enters a more mature phase. China Resources Land’s The Sterling in southwestern Kowloon, in Cheung Sha Wan, sold all 180 units offered in its first price-list batch, generating nearly HK$1.6 billion (US$204 million). The project received more than 46,000 subscriptions, or more than 254 times the number of units available, setting a record for first-round subscriptions at a Hong Kong first-hand residential project. The response was driven by the project’s urban location and competitive pricing, rather than a broad return to aggressive buying, according to industry insiders. The project is close to Nam Cheong station, making it a relatively rare large-scale new development in the city area. “The response is part of a broader pattern,” said Roy Ng, head of research at consultancy Newmark.

August 23, 2026

Markets

US economist Barry Eichengreen on reality of de-dollarisation and next currency reshuffle

Barry Eichengreen is a leading American economist and one of the world’s foremost experts on international monetary systems. He is a professor of economics and political science at the University of California, Berkeley, where he has taught since 1987. He served as a senior policy adviser at the International Monetary Fund in 1997-98. Here, he discusses why today’s “de-dollarisation” talk is different from past episodes, how close the world is to a reshuffling of the international monetary...

August 23, 2026

Markets

Wall Street helped build modern China. But is it now being cast aside?

Beijing once courted Wall Street’s titans, hailing them as ‘old friends of China’. But the relationship today is far frostier For decades, Wall Street titans – from former Goldman Sachs chief Henry Paulson to Blackstone co-founder Stephen Schwarzman and Bridgewater founder Ray Dalio – were hailed as “old friends of China”, feted by senior officials and granted rare access to the country’s top leadership. Today, while American financiers continue to visit China and maintain commercial links, those private meetings with the top leadership have largely diminished, even as Beijing gradually opens its capital markets. The shift has raised a crucial question for global investors: can Wall Street maintain its bridge to Beijing amid a changing US-China relationship? “The decline of such roles suggests they have stopped being useful,” said Christopher Marquis, Sinyi professor of Chinese management at Cambridge Judge Business School. “China’s economy no longer needs foreign bankers’ capital and expertise the way it did 20-plus years ago.” The “honeymoon period” for Wall Street and Beijing dates to China’s reform era in the late 1990s and 2000s, when Beijing relied heavily on foreign financial expertise to modernise its economy.

August 23, 2026

Markets

‘Huge influx’: expat retirees projected to drive Hong Kong’s premium home demand

Wealthy expats increasingly choose Hong Kong as retirement base, lured by its low-tax regime and international connectivity, analysts say “A huge influx of expats who used to live in Hong Kong are moving back with a long-term view to retirement,” said Victoria Allan, founder and CEO of Habitat Property. “Many expats who previously would have left to retire are staying and purchasing [property] for the first time.” About 30 per cent of Habitat’s recent sales were contributed by expat clients, Allan said.

August 23, 2026

Markets

After gaining EV dominance, Chinese carmakers shift goal to take on full-hybrid behemoths

Chinese carmakers, already at the vanguard of electric vehicle (EV) technology and production, are looking to make a dent in international marques’ full-hybrid vehicle stronghold as they continue to disrupt the global car industry’s pecking order. Major car builders including Geely Auto and Changan Automobile have reported impressive sales of hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), luring domestic consumers away from the likes of Toyota’s Prius. “Chinese-developed HEVs, banking on the carmakers’...

August 23, 2026