Hong Kong AI stocks slide 12% as global tech rout deepens

Hong Kong-listed artificial intelligence stocks tumbled on July 17, with Zhipu (02513.HK) plunging 12.14%, as a global technology selloff deepened following overnight losses on Wall Street.

"The direct trigger is overseas deleveraging in trading positions, which is now transmitting to Asian markets," said a strategist at Sinolink Securities. "South Korea's new restrictions on single-stock leveraged ETFs are compounding the pressure on tech names."

Other AI-related stocks followed the decline. Montage Technology (06809.HK) fell 3.59%, GigaDevice (03986.HK) dropped 3.50%, and Cambridge Technology (06166.HK) slid 3.29%. The selloff came a day after the Hang Seng Index had rallied 1.33% to 25,008.6, with semiconductors as the session's sole laggard — Montage had already lost 23% in the prior session alone.

The declines tracked the Nasdaq Composite's 1.47% drop on July 16, where semiconductor heavyweights SK Hynix fell more than 13% and Western Digital lost 9%. South Korea's Financial Services Commission on July 16 tightened margin requirements for single-stock leveraged ETFs, raising the minimum保证金 from 10 million won to 30 million won and banning new listings of such products. The 2026 World Artificial Intelligence Conference opened in Shanghai on July 17, though the event failed to stem selling in AI stocks. The Hang Seng Tech Index was on track to reverse the prior session's 1.98% gain as the rotation out of technology names accelerated.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.