HK Stock Market Move | Cement stocks collectively rose, with cement prices rising in many places in September. The positive outlook for real estate is expected to promote the steady operation of building material companies.

Cement stocks collectively rose as of the time of writing, with CNBM (03323) up 6.01% at HK$2.47, Anhui Conch Cement (00914) up 5.27% at HK$19.58, ASIA CEMENT CH (00743) up 3.17% at HK$2.28, and Huaxin Cement (06655) up 1.84% at HK$7.2. On the news front, entering September, cement prices in various regions have been raised to varying degrees. According to Century Building Information, at the beginning of September, cement prices in many places in Zhejiang rose by 10-20 yuan/ton, with Zhejiang completing the first round of price increases for the entire province in September; some brands in the southern part of Jiangsu and other markets have successively raised prices by 20-30 yuan/ton, with most brands maintaining price increases ranging from 10-30 yuan/ton; in Sichuan, several places have notified that the ex-factory prices of various types of bagged and bulk cement will be raised by 40 yuan/ton from the original prices starting from midnight on the 6th. Recently, the State Council Information Office held a press conference to announce several favorable policies for the real estate sector, involving reserve requirement ratio cuts, interest rate reductions, adjustments to existing home mortgage rates, and reductions in down payment ratios for second homes. CITIC SEC pointed out that the favorable policies are expected to spread throughout the entire industry chain, promoting the stabilization of operations and profit restoration for companies involved in real estate construction and building materials. The bank believes that the cement industry is already at a cyclical profit bottom, and if real estate sales can stabilize with policy support, the drag of real estate on cement demand will not worsen. Additionally, with the gradual improvement in the cement supply pattern in recent years, the profit restoration expectations for leading companies in the industry are gradually improving.