Finance Morning | Chengdu Cuts Housing Fund Down Payment; Analysts Urge Heavy Nvidia Buying Ahead of Earnings

📊 Today's Asia Market Recap

1. Chengdu Cuts Provident Fund Minimum Down Payment to 15%

Source: Eastmoney

On August 25, Chengdu released an optimized housing provident fund loan policy that took effect the same day. The new rules cover three measures: lowering the down payment ratio, implementing loan interest subsidies, and supporting quality housing.

Specifically, the policy sets the minimum down payment at 15% for provident fund loans used to buy newly built homes, a notable reduction that lowers the entry threshold for homebuyers.

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2. Joe Tsai Buys Alibaba Shares for a Second Straight Day

Source: Sina

According to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, Alibaba Group Chairman Joe Tsai bought about HK$82 million more Alibaba shares on August 25. It was his second straight day of buying after the company's new share placement, bringing his two-day total to HK$160 million.

On August 24, Tsai and CEO Eddie Wu together spent about HK$120 million on Alibaba shares. The buying follows Alibaba's August 23 announcement that it planned to place 710 million new shares at HK$112.70 each, raising HK$80 billion (about US$10.2 billion), with all proceeds going to full-stack AI capabilities and infrastructure expansion.

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3. Laopu Gold First-Half Net Profit Jumps Over 88%

Source: Sina

Laopu Gold released its 2026 interim results on August 25. First-half sales performance (tax-inclusive revenue) reached RMB 22.78 billion, up 60.6% year on year; revenue was RMB 19.81 billion, up 60.3%; and net profit attributable to shareholders was RMB 4.27 billion, up 88.2%.

As of June 30, 2026, Laopu Gold operated 45 self-operated stores, and its membership reached 730,000, up nearly 20% from the end of 2025.

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4. Hong Kong Chip Stocks Rally; GigaDevice, Montage Up Nearly 5%

Source: SFC

Hong Kong's three major indexes closed lower on August 25, with the Hang Seng Index at 25,511.10 points. Tech stocks were mostly higher: Zhipu surged over 5%, Lenovo rose nearly 4%, NetEase gained over 2%, and Alibaba advanced over 1.5%.

Chip stocks rallied in the afternoon, with GigaDevice and Montage Technology up nearly 5%. SMIC and Hua Hong will release their first-half results on August 26 and 27 respectively.

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5. Ahead of Nvidia Earnings, Analyst Urges Heavy Buying

Source: Sina

On August 25, ahead of Nvidia's fiscal 2027 second-quarter results, Cantor Fitzgerald analyst CJ Muse advised investors to load up on Nvidia shares. He said investors were treating Nvidia as if the company had lost in AI, a view he called completely wrong.

Muse wrote in a client note that it is time to close your eyes and load up on Nvidia stock, adding that once the stock starts rising, the gains will be very, very fast.

Nvidia will report fiscal Q2 results after the US market close on August 26. Jefferies analysts expect July-quarter revenue of US$95 billion, above the US$91.9 billion consensus.

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6. Korean Stocks Close Up 0.68%; SK Hynix Rises 0.42%

Source: Sina

The KOSPI closed up 45.77 points, or 0.68%, at 6,742.74 on August 25, after falling more than 4% intraday. Samsung Electronics ended flat, while SK Hynix gained 0.42%.

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7. He Xiaopeng Raises Another $900 Million for XPeng's Robot Unit

Source: Sina

Alongside its second-quarter earnings, XPeng announced a $900 million (about RMB 6.5 billion) funding round for its robot unit, with a post-money valuation of RMB 43 billion, led by IDG and joined by Tencent and Alibaba. The amount exceeds Unitree's IPO proceeds, and the valuation equals half of XPeng's current market value.

XPeng posted record second-quarter deliveries and a 20.7% gross margin, but a net loss of over RMB 1.3 billion, widening year on year; quarterly R&D spending was RMB 2.914 billion, up 32.1%. In the round, outside investors contributed $600 million, XPeng Group $200 million, and entities linked to He Xiaopeng and Gu Hongdi $100 million.

After the deal, XPeng's stake in the robot unit will fall from 100% to 81.97%, potentially diluting to 68.41% if related warrants are fully exercised. There is also a seven-year bet: if the unit fails to complete an IPO before 2033, investors have the right to demand redemption.

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8. Rare Admission: Sam Altman Says He Was Wrong

Source: Sina

In the latest episode of David Senra's Founders podcast, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman made a rare admission of two mistakes. He said that when GPT-4 was released he genuinely thought software disruption was around the corner, but it turned out he was wrong; even with a tool like Codex, he still copies and pastes between apps as he has for years.

Altman also singled out Anthropic's doomsday marketing, accusing it of spreading fear while asking for money. In the interview he reiterated that people are the whole point.

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9. Gold Near Three-Month High as Market Watches US Debt Moves

Source: Sina Finance

Gold traded near a three-month high, edging up toward $4,680 an ounce. Since the US Treasury stepped up long-term bond buybacks, gold has risen for four straight sessions, up more than 7% in total.

The surprise move reignited concerns about rising borrowing costs while pressuring the dollar. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he was ready to expand buybacks of high-cost debt but offered no further signals on Monday. Investors will also look to Fed Chair Kevin Warsh's speech at the Jackson Hole conference on Friday.

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10. Citi Strategists: Global Equity Long Flows Are Fading

Source: Sina

A Citi strategy team led by David Chow said in a research note on August 25 that long-position flows into global equities are fading. US investor activity has shifted toward unwinding longs and opening new shorts, with S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures exposure returning to neutral.

The note said the Russell 2000 remains a clear exception, with long exposure still near a three-year high; if bearish momentum continues, profit-taking risk will be elevated. Europe has the highest average positioning among developed markets, and Germany's DAX faces key tactical risks.

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