HK Stock Market Move | Chinese brokerage stocks across the board fall, U.S. Federal Reserve interest rate cut meets expectations. Institutions say loose trading or marginal correction.

Chinese-funded securities firms' stocks all fell, as of the time of writing, CC SECURITIES (01375) fell 4.79%, to 2.78 Hong Kong dollars; CMSC (06099) fell 3.76%, to 16.65 Hong Kong dollars; EB SECURITIES (06178) fell 3.34%, to 10.72 Hong Kong dollars; China Securities Co., Ltd. (06066) fell 2.74%, to 13.5 Hong Kong dollars. On the news front, on September 17, the Federal Reserve announced a 25 basis point cut in the federal funds rate target range to between 4.00% and 4.25%. This is the Fed's first rate cut in 2025 and follows three rate cuts in 2024. The Founder stated that the rate cut by the Fed was in line with expectations. The September rate-setting meeting has once again opened a rate-cutting cycle for the Fed, but the market has been overly optimistic in its expectations, leading to a marginal rebound in loose trading. Huatai pointed out that securities firms' investment and brokerage businesses have benefited from a booming market, while investment banking and international business have shown strong recovery, entering a new phase of sustained growth in multiple business lines. Under a positive cycle, the stability and sustainability of securities firms' performance are improving, and there is continued optimism for opportunities to reevaluate the sector's value. Individual stocks to watch include top securities firms with more cost-effective valuations such as Guotai Haitong AH and CICC AH; as well as mid-sized securities firms such as Guoyuan and Industrial.