HK Stock Market Move | Gold stocks lead the decline, the first interest rate meeting of the Federal Reserve releases a hawkish signal, and the central bank's willingness to hold gold remains high.

Golden stocks lead the decline, as of press time, Zijin Gold International (02259) fell 3.98% to HK$113.3; Shandong Gold Mining (01787) fell 2.45% to HK$22.34; CHINAGOLDINTL (02099) fell 2.66% to HK$153.8; Chifeng Jilong Gold Mining (06693) fell 1.52% to HK$28.42. On the news front, well-known journalist Nick Timiraos, often referred to as the "new Reuters of the Federal Reserve", pointed out on Wednesday that the first interest rate meeting chaired by the newly appointed Federal Reserve Chairman Powell released the clearest hawkish signal to date. Although the Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged, the latest dot plot shows that 9 officials believe that at least one rate hike is needed this year. It is worth noting that there is a clear shift in the Federal Reserve's internal assessment of future policy paths. Powell stated that he will establish five working groups to review the Fed's approach in key policy areas. In addition, the World Gold Council released a report on global central bank gold reserves survey for 2026 on the 16th, with 89% of surveyed central banks expecting that global central banks will continue to increase their gold reserves in the next 12 months. At the same time, the proportion of central banks planning to increase their gold holdings has reached a record high. The report mentions that gold has recently surpassed US bonds to become the world's largest official reserve asset.