China Tech Earnings Renew Focus on Hardware Stocks Over Internet

China Tech Earnings Renew Focus on Hardware Stocks Over Internet

Fri, August 14, 2026 at 6:54 AM GMT+3 2 min read

(Bloomberg) -- Chinese tech firms' early earnings are giving hardware stocks renewed momentum, while internet platforms still struggle to show a full consumer‑demand recovery.

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Shares of Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. climbed as much as 6.4% in Hong Kong on Friday after the chipmaker reported earnings that beat estimates and a stronger-than-expected gross margin outlook.

But online retailer JD.com Inc. fell more than 10% after posting its first quarterly revenue decline since listing in 2014. Along with Meituan, JD.com was among the biggest drags on the Hang Seng Tech Index, which slid 1.6%.

Since late June, investors have increasingly shifted into internet and e-consumer stocks as the AI rally cooled, reversing first‑half trends. Early reads on this week's earnings point to their preference toward AI stocks possibly regaining strength, pressuring internet shares as more results come due.

"Investors generally believe spending in AI hardware by Chinese firms will continue to grow, hence funds are switching out from non-AI names, e.g. JD, despite strong bottom-line growth and share price dips," said Stanley Tang, senior portfolio manager at Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management.

Further underscoring investors' durable appetite for AI hardware stocks, newly listed memory-chip maker CXMT Corp. on Thursday overtook internet giant Tencent Holdings Ltd. as the world's most valuable Chinese company.

Chinese internet firms also have vowed heavy AI spending, but their post‑earnings stock performance partly shows concerns about the pace of such investments. Tencent's shares fell Thursday despite reporting solid growth for advertising and mobile games, as Goldman Sachs Group Inc. analysts noted that AI spending was higher than expected.

Not all hardware stocks did well. Hua Hong Grace Semiconductor Ltd. plunged Friday after a profit miss.

Meituan and Baidu Inc. may provide the next major test of whether investors rotate back into internet stocks, or keep favoring AI-linked players, with earnings expected on Friday and Aug. 18, respectively.

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