The Hong Kong stock market ended lower Friday, with the benchmark Hang Seng Index down 1.07 percent to close at 24,507.81 points, as tariff concerns and the U.S. Fed's unchanged interest rates contributed to the risk-off sentiment, according to an analyst.
The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index also fell, dropping 0.88 percent to end at 8,804.42 points. Similarly, the Hang Seng Tech Index declined 1.02 percent to finish at 5,397.4 points.
Japan's market followed the trend, with the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average declining 270.22 points, or 0.66 percent, to close at 40,799.6.
Market analyst Timothy Pope provided insights into these movements, noting mixed results in the electric vehicle (EV) sector.
"The Hong Kong market was also sliding. The Hang Seng ended the session off by one percent. Tariff worries of course, and some slight disappointment that the U.S. Fed kept interest rates unchanged contributed to the risk-off mood," Pope said.
"EV companies were doing pretty well at least initially. Xpeng shares rose more than two percent in early trade after the company flagged a pretty huge jump in vehicle deliveries for July. However, perhaps investors remembered that some other EV maker sales have been questioned quite thoroughly lately with a number of schemes uncovered to make those figures look better than they really are. Xpeng's shares ended the session about half of one percent lower, giving up all their early gains. So while the brakes went on for Xpeng, Nio stocks though had their foot to the floor right through till the end of the market, ending 8.6 percent higher after the EV maker launched a new SUV today. Elsewhere we saw the markets were broadly lower. Chinese energy shares mirrored the losses we saw on the mainland markets, and investors were booking profits on biotech firms too. Consumer stocks were looking a little bit more resilient. There were gains for e-commerce giant Alibaba, and the food delivery group Meituan," he added.
Tariff worries, Fed decisions contribute to Hong Kong stock decline: analyst
China plays a vital role in the wave of artificial intelligence (AI) and the development of future industries, said government officials and business leaders attending the China Development Forum 2026 that opened in Beijing on Sunday.
Speaking at the Symposium on Technological Innovation and Future Industry Development, Minister of Industry and Information Technology Li Lecheng said China will accelerate the innovative development of industries of the future.
"Centering around key areas like artificial general intelligence, quantum sci-tech, and clean, low-carbon hydrogen, we have deployed over 100 innovative research projects of future industries, unveiled the list and appointed leaders for these projects. We will continue to leverage the principal role of enterprises, vigorously nurturing leading technology enterprises and high-tech enterprises that lead in core technologies and possess strong innovation capabilities to drive the industries to advance towards cutting-edge and high-end fields," Li said.
From quantum technology to 6G, China is sharing its sci-tech achievements with countries around the world, working together to promote the development of future industries.
Business leaders from across the world said China is leading the breakthrough in AI technologies and will be fertile ground for the growth of future industries.
"From new energy, electric vehicles and high-end manufacturing to breakthroughs in robotics and artificial intelligence, China is at the best moment to share the fruits of sci-tech development with the world. In 2025, downloads of open-source (AI) models from China led the world, allowing global developers to freely access, fine-tune, and deploy these powerful models, truly making smart technologies a public good for all humanity," said Joseph Tsai, Chairman of Alibaba Group.
"China's complete industrial ecosystem will be fertile ground for the growth of future industries. Take embodied AI robots for example, their development relies not only on breakthroughs in intelligent algorithms but also on supporting components like precision transmission and execution parts like reducers and servo motors. A rich diversity of innovation pathways, a complete industrial system, and robust industrial supporting capabilities will be the fertile ground for the development of future industries," said Lei Jun, founder and chairman of Xiaomi Group.
"Not only manufacturing. So it's AI plus in every space, in every sector, in every industry. For us, we are the company in the world that powers AI in supplying energy systems to AI factories across the world. And therefore for us, the challenge is to make sure that we go fast enough, strong enough to support all the computing that is used by Chinese companies or by Chinese stakeholders," said Jean-Pascal Tricoire, chairman of Schneider Electric.
"Brain-computer interfaces have been listed as one of the six major future industries in China's 15th Five-Year Plan period this year. We are now fully leveraging AI technologies to decode information within the brain, using this capability to better address many issues related to brain diseases. This enables people with disabilities who have lost hands or feet to control prosthetic limbs with their thoughts, allowing them to regain their normal daily life," said Han Bicheng, founder of BrainCo, a Chinese neurotech company.
The two-day China Development Forum 2026 is themed on "China in Its 15th Five-Year Plan Period: Advancing High-Quality Development and Creating New Opportunities Together."
China to accelerate innovative development of future industries: official
