Could JD.com Sell Teslas?

Key News

Asian equities were mostly higher overnight in a quiet night as last night was Mainland China’s last trading session before the week-long Mid-Autumn Festival.

Mainland media reported that E-Commerce giant JD.com will start selling cars soon, with a focus on electric vehicles. According to the report, the retailer will allow buyers to put down deposits on new Tesla
TSLA
models through its platform. This is an interesting development as Tesla has historically only engaged in direct sales globally. Any sales of Teslas by third parties were done so without any coordination with the automaker. This also represents a push by JD to increase sales volumes as China’s uneven consumer recovery has had an outsized impact on the retailer, which focuses on big-ticket items.

China’s President Xi Jinping is reported to have met with South Korea’s foreign minister at the Asian Games, which are currently underway in Hangzhou and Zhejiang Province. He is reportedly considering a visit to South Korea, which would represent Xi’s first-ever visit to the Republic.

The Asian Games are a spectacle unto themselves and a once-in-four-year opportunity for a host country to show off its development to other Asian nations. With China as this year’s host, the country is trying put its technological prowess on display. China has chosen to host the games in and around Hangzhou in Zhejiang Province. Hangzhou is known as a hub for non-state-owned enterprises and is the home of Alibaba. This choice of location is important and may speak to the government’s prioritization of the technology and internet industries.

A trading halt was placed on property giant Evergrande shares after the conglomerate’s chairman was placed under police supervision. There are scant details available on the reasons for this move, but it is important to note that this does not actually mean he will end up being charged with a crime.

The Hang Seng and Hang Seng Tech fell -1.36% and -1.45%, respectively, on volume that increased +5.6% from yesterday, which is 70% of the 1-year average. 175 stocks advanced while 298 declined. Main Board short turnover increased +17% from yesterday, which is 83% of the 1-year average, as 20% of volume was short turnover (remember that Hong Kong short turnover includes ETF contracts, which are driven by market makers’ hedging). The value factor outperformed the growth factor as large caps “outperformed” (i.e. fell less than) small caps. Energy was the only positive sector, up +0.18%. Meanwhile, consumer staples fell -1.98%, consumer discretionary fell -1.83%, and communication services fell -1.43%. The top-performing subsectors were energy, business services, and semiconductors. Meanwhile, consumer services, retailers, and food/staples were among the worst-performing. Southbound Stock Connect volumes were light as Mainland investors bought a net $527million worth of Hong Kong-listed stocks and ETFs.

Shanghai, Shenzhen, and the STAR Board gained +0.1%, +0.44%, and +0.87%, respectively, on volume that was flat from yesterday, which is 82% of the 1-year average. 3,573 stocks advanced while 1,2337 declined. The growth factor outperformed the value factor as small caps outpaced large caps. The top-performing sectors were technology, which gained +0.66%, discretionary +0.53% and industrials +0.25% while staples -1.07%, healthcare -0.52% and communication -0.5%. Top subsectors were education, electronic components and communication equipment while chemicals, precious metals and agriculture were the worst. Northbound Stock Connect volumes were moderate as foreign investors sold -$683mm of mainland listed stocks.

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