Afternoon surge in the market! Alibaba suddenly makes an announcement! Hong Kong stocks deliver more big news!

Alibaba Leads the Hang Seng Tech!

In the afternoon, Alibaba’s Hong Kong stocks surged straight up, once rising over 4%, causing the Hang Seng Tech Index to turn from decline to gain. Hong Kong stocks Kingsoft Cloud and GDS Holdings both rose over 16%. The A-share computing power concept stocks remained active, with Data Port soaring to the daily limit, and Hang Steel and Capital Online among others also climbing higher.

Alibaba Cloud announced that due to the explosive global AI demand and supply chain price increases, prices for Alibaba Cloud AI computing power, storage, and other products have risen by up to 34%. Among them, the computing cards like Pingtouge Zhenwu 810E increased by 5%–34%, and the file storage product CPFS (Intelligent Computing Edition) rose by 30%.

Additionally, recent news has emerged about Middle Eastern funds returning to Hong Kong. Hong Kong SAR Chief Executive John Lee stated yesterday that the Iran conflict is expected to bring some short-term shocks and volatility to Hong Kong, but it will also create opportunities. Because Hong Kong is very safe and stable, it is a safe haven for funds, with ongoing long-term capital inflows.

Alibaba “Drives” a Large Rally

On March 18, midday, Alibaba Cloud announced a price adjustment for AI computing power, storage, and other services, citing the global AI demand explosion and supply chain price hikes, with significant increases in core hardware procurement costs. After careful assessment, the company decided to adjust prices starting April 18, 2026. The prices for Alibaba Cloud AI computing power, CPFS (Intelligent Computing Edition), and other services could increase by up to 34%. Among them, the Pingtouge Zhenwu 810E and similar computing cards increased by 5%–34%, and the CPFS (Intelligent Computing Edition) storage product rose by 30%.

According to reports, insiders revealed that another major reason for the price hike was the “surge in token call volume.” Alibaba Cloud’s MaaS business, BaiLian, achieved its highest growth rate from January to March this year. Alibaba Cloud is shifting scarce AI computing resources toward token-related services.

Stimulated by this, Alibaba’s stock surged sharply in the afternoon, once rising over 4%, with A-share computing power concept stocks up nearly 4%. Major international banks raised their forecast for cloud business growth in fiscal year 2027 to 45% (the highest in the market, previously 40%), and increased the mid-point of their SOTP valuation by 2% to $245 per share, mainly due to higher cloud business valuation. The optimistic scenario valuation is $260 per share. As of the evening close on the 17th, Alibaba’s stock was only at $136.57 per share.

According to Galaxy Securities, OpenClaw has ranked first in daily popular applications on OpenRouter for several consecutive days, with its token consumption far exceeding the second place. In the first week of March 2026, the platform processed 14.8 trillion tokens, doubling from the beginning of the year. The token output driven by Agent workflows has exceeded half of the platform’s total output. This indicates a shift of AI industry value from model capability to task completion ability, causing structural impacts on computing infrastructure and promoting inference demand to expand through “center + edge” computing collaboration.

John Lee Speaks

Hong Kong SAR Chief Executive John Lee said yesterday that the Iran conflict is expected to bring some short-term shocks and volatility to Hong Kong, but it will also create opportunities. Because Hong Kong is very safe and stable, it is a safe haven for funds, with ongoing long-term capital inflows, which will benefit the development of Hong Kong’s financial center, especially family offices, risk management, and asset management; it may also positively influence the offshore RMB market.

John Lee pointed out that the Iran conflict has disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, potentially reducing the transportation and supply of crude oil and natural gas, leading to higher prices, which could increase gasoline and logistics costs. The pressure on aviation will be significant, as air traffic control continues, flights decrease, and fuel costs and other factors push ticket prices higher, indirectly causing some price pressures in Hong Kong.

Regarding opportunities, he told Hong Kong Wen Wei Po that Hong Kong has built good cooperative relationships with the Middle East over the years, including leading delegations to four influential Middle Eastern countries. Many cooperation projects have been completed, contracts signed, and some projects are underway or in certain stages. “Hong Kong’s cooperation with the Middle East will not be affected by the Middle East situation.”

He emphasized that Middle Eastern countries need to diversify risks, and their funds remain abundant. Under “One Country, Two Systems,” Hong Kong can ensure regional security and investment safety, maintaining the security of funds, regional stability, and its role as a connector between the mainland and international markets—an “ultra-connector” and “super-value creator.” There is no place that can replace Hong Kong, with its advantages of “security, freedom, no capital controls, no personnel entry/exit restrictions, no data controls, no cargo restrictions,” which will become even more prominent.

He stressed that Hong Kong ranks among the top five in many aspects of global competitiveness. Coupled with national opportunities and the chance to connect internally and externally, he believes Hong Kong’s opportunities outweigh challenges. Therefore, cooperation with the Middle East will not slow down. “Even amid tensions in the Middle East, each country will have its considerations, but if their funds need to find a way out, Hong Kong will be more proactive in engaging Middle Eastern investors.”

John Lee revealed that some Middle Eastern investors are already considering how to leverage Hong Kong’s safety and opportunities, and he believes financial professionals can provide relevant information from time to time, further highlighting Hong Kong’s advantages as an international financial, trade, and innovation hub.

(Article source: Securities Times)