HK Stock Market Move | Most mainland bank stocks rose, with CITIC BANK (00998) up nearly 3% and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (01398) up over 2%.

Most mainland bank stocks rose. As of press time, CITIC BANK (00998) gained 2.86% to HK$8.64; Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (01398) rose 2.46% to HK$7.7; Postal Savings Bank Of China (01658) climbed 1.88% to HK$5.425; Bank Of China (03988) advanced 1.59% to HK$6.075. On the news front, in the first half of this year, the six major banks together achieved operating revenue exceeding 2 trillion yuan, an increase of approximately 171.9 billion yuan year-on-year; they recorded net profit attributable to shareholders of approximately 712.6 billion yuan, earning nearly 30.1 billion yuan more than the same period last year. Combined with the interim profit distribution plans disclosed simultaneously, all six major banks will continue to pay interim dividends, with the total proposed dividend amount approaching 221 billion yuan, an increase of approximately 16.3 billion yuan year-on-year, and the dividend payout ratio generally raised to 31%. CITIC SEC pointed out that from a medium-term perspective, the banking sector has entered the tail end of the risk cycle, and the first derivative of ROE has already improved. It is expected that the absolute ROE of the industry will stabilize this year and next, in the range of 8%-9%, helping to boost the sector's valuation. The sector is expected to be re-rated from a "high-dividend defensive asset" to a "high-certainty equity asset." The banking sector will continue to show an upward valuation trend, and the absolute return space for the full year will persist.