As 2025 draws to a close, Hong Kong's stock market has shown strong resilience despite a series of external uncertainties. In the face of unpredictable tariffs from the Trump administration, global inflation concerns, and a shift in Federal Reserve policies, the Hong Kong market has gradually regained confidence, entering a slow, steady bull market. The Hang Seng Index and Hang Seng Tech Index have risen by nearly 29% and 24%, respectively, offering substantial returns for investors.

In 2025, the most outstanding performing sectors were materials, technology, and pharmaceuticals. Particularly, gold and semiconductor stocks, represented by companies like China National Gold International and Hua Hong Semiconductor, experienced significant growth, becoming the market's focal points.

Materials Sector: Gold Stocks Lead the Charge, Soaring Over 300%

The materials sector of the Hong Kong stock market performed surprisingly well in 2025, with a yearly increase of nearly 160%, making it the market's biggest highlight. Precious metals such as gold and silver continued to reach new historic highs, driving the sector's strong rally.

Amid growing global economic uncertainty and rising inflation risks, gold's appeal as a safe-haven asset became more pronounced. Spot gold prices broke through $4,500 per ounce, rising more than 70% throughout the year, driving a surge in gold stocks. China National Gold International (02099.HK) skyrocketed by over 300%, becoming the undisputed leader of the materials sector. Shandong Gold (01787.HK) and Zhaojin Mining (01818.HK) also saw nearly 200% increases.

Not only gold, but silver, platinum, copper, cobalt, lithium, and other non-ferrous metals also experienced strong performance, pushing related stocks to rally. For example, Yunnan Tin (03993.HK) surged by over 280%, while Minmetals Development (01208.HK) and Jiangxi Copper (00358.HK) both rose nearly 240%.

Technology Sector: Semiconductor Stocks Shine, Hua Hong Semiconductor Soars Nearly 230%

The technology sector also showed strong growth in 2025, especially semiconductor and artificial intelligence companies, which became the market's favorites. Benefiting from global technological innovation and China's policy support, Hua Hong Semiconductor (01347.HK) surged nearly 230% in 2025, leading the Hang Seng Tech Index and becoming the biggest highlight of the tech sector.

SMIC (00981.HK) also performed well, with its stock price rising over 110%, firmly holding its position as the leader in the chip industry. Additionally, with the rapid development of AI and automation, Horizon Robotics-W (09660.HK) saw a stock price increase of over 150%, leading the robotics sector.

In the internet sector, Alibaba-W (09988.HK) also performed well, rising over 80% during the year and maintaining its position as the leader in Hong Kong's tech stocks. Other companies like Kuaishou-W (01024.HK) and NetEase (NTES.US) also rose over 60%, demonstrating the strong recovery of the tech industry.

Pharmaceutical Sector: Innovative Drug Stocks Lead, Three Sheng Pharmaceutical Soars Over 350%

The Hong Kong pharmaceutical and biotech sector experienced a significant rebound in 2025, with a yearly increase of over 64%. Driven by favorable policies and industry recovery, innovative drug stocks became the market's focus. As Chinese pharmaceutical companies' pipelines matured, several innovative drug concept stocks saw rapid stock price increases.

Three Sheng Pharmaceutical (01530.HK) surged nearly 350% throughout the year, becoming the biggest highlight in the pharmaceutical sector. GC Pharma-B (01672.HK) and Kelun-Biotech (06990.HK) also rose by over 310% and 150%, respectively. Hansoh Pharmaceutical (03692.HK) and Innovent Biologics (01801.HK) also saw their stock prices increase by more than 120%.

Furthermore, as domestic healthcare policies continued to support the industry, the R&D and industrialization of innovative drugs accelerated, and this trend is expected to continue in the coming years.

Financial Sector: Clear Signs of Recovery, Capital Markets Steady Upturn

Despite global market pressures, the Hong Kong financial sector showed stable performance in 2025, with a yearly increase of nearly 40%. With the easing of Sino-US tensions and a recovery in capital markets, financial stocks attracted significant capital inflows.

HSBC Holdings (0005.HK), one of the largest banks globally, continued to perform strongly in global markets, with its stock price steadily rising. CITIC Securities (6030.HK) also performed exceptionally well, leveraging its strong influence in the Hong Kong market to attract substantial capital.

Outlook for 2026: Hong Kong Stocks Expected to Continue Their Uptrend, Tech and New Energy Remain Mainstream Investment Areas

Looking ahead to 2026, with the gradual recovery of the domestic economy and improved external liquidity, Hong Kong's stock market is expected to continue its upward trend. Particularly, with ongoing support from sectors like technology, healthcare, and green energy, sector performance may continue to diversify. Tech and new energy stocks will remain the mainstream choices for investors, especially in AI-related sub-sectors and the electric vehicle industry, which will continue to receive widespread attention.

In addition, with the appreciation of the Chinese yuan and the recovery of global economies, Hong Kong's stock market will further benefit from valuation corrections and corporate profit growth. Institutions generally have a positive outlook on the medium- and long-term prospects of the Hong Kong market, with expectations for a second round of valuation recovery and further performance growth.