Blue Lotus Non US Internet research, Blue Lotus Research Institute

Ying Pan

Blue Lotus Non US Internet research

China growth and global non-US Internet equities

Blue Lotus Research Institute

Blue Lotus Research is a Hong Kong Type 4 Licensed investment advisory firm focusing on Chinese growth equities and global non-US Internet equities

Equity Bottom-Up

Alibaba Group Holding  / Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>Early 6/18 pulled June sales into May, leading to disappointing June NBS data. Combined, online retail grew 5.1% yoy in May/June, and 6.4% yoy in 2Q24. </li>
<li>PDD remained the top shelf-ecommerce platform with GMV growing ~20%, followed by Taobao/Tmall (TTG) at ~6-7%, and JD and VIPS at ~2-3% yoy. </li>
<li>We expect JD and BABA to report slight earnings beats and guide upbeat on continued profitability improvement in 2H24. </li>
</ul>


Early 6/18 pulled June sales into May, leading to disappointing June NBS data. Combined, online retail grew 5.1% yoy in May/June, and 6.4% yoy in 2Q24. 
PDD remained the top shelf-ecommerce platform with GMV growing ~20%, followed by Taobao/Tmall (TTG) at ~6-7%, and JD and VIPS at ~2-3% yoy. 
We expect JD and BABA to report slight earnings beats and guide upbeat on continued profitability improvement in 2H24. 


[Blue Lotus E-Commerce Sector Update]: Tax Reform a Light at the End of the Tunnel for Ecommerce

Tracking developments across tech supply chains, Tech Supply Chain Tracker

Tech Supply Chain Tracker

Tracking developments across tech supply chains

<ul><li>Humanoid robot development is rapidly advancing with improvements in AI, mobility, and interaction capabilities, exciting progress being made.</li><li>China's cloud service spending expected to surge 20% by 2024, with the country leading the hydrogen race through policies and demand.</li><li>Former TSMC R&amp;D director sheds light on Taiwan chip industry facing geopolitical shifts, reaching a crucial crossroads amidst declining semiconductor market.</li></ul>

Humanoid robot development is rapidly advancing with improvements in AI, mobility, and interaction capabilities, exciting progress being made.China's cloud service spending expected to surge 20% by 2024, with the country leading the hydrogen race through policies and demand.Former TSMC R&amp;D director sheds light on Taiwan chip industry facing geopolitical shifts, reaching a crucial crossroads amidst declining semiconductor market.

Tech Supply Chain Tracker (28-Jun-2024): Humanoid robot develpment status.

Head of Research, IPOs & Placements, Aequitas Research

Sumeet Singh

Head of Research, IPOs & Placements

IPOs and Placements coverage across Asia Pacific

Aequitas Research

We cover all listing across the Asia Pacific along with follow-up placements. As of Dec 2020, our team had covered 539 IPOs with a hit rate of 73.5% and 685 placements with a hit rate of 66.8%.

We combine fundamental bottom-up views with our proprietary quantitative framework to provide a holistic coverage across new listings and placements. Our coverage includes pre-IPO notes before the deal is launched, follow-up analysis once the deal is live and post-listing trading analysis as well.

Equity Capital Markets

Alibaba Group Holding  / Equity Capital Markets

<ul>
<li>Aequitas Research's weekly update on the IPOs, placements, lockup expiry and other ECM linked events that were covered by the team over the past week.</li>
<li>On the IPO front, we continued to look at <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/shift-up-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:36232:1" rel="noopener">Shift Up (462870 KS)</a>,  <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/guzman-y-gomez" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:43656:1" rel="noopener">Guzman Y Gomez</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/webtoon-entertainment-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:43652:1" rel="noopener">Webtoon Entertainment (WBTN US)</a>, along with <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/mao-geping-cosmetics-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:41297:1" rel="noopener">Mao Geping Cosmetics</a>. </li>
<li>On the placement front, there were quite a few deals in India, while <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/atour-lifestyle-holdings-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:33481:1" rel="noopener">Atour Lifestyle Holdings (ATAT US)</a> was the major Asia linked offerings.</li>
</ul>


Aequitas Research's weekly update on the IPOs, placements, lockup expiry and other ECM linked events that were covered by the team over the past week.
On the IPO front, we continued to look at Shift Up (462870 KS),  Guzman Y Gomez and Webtoon Entertainment (WBTN US), along with Mao Geping Cosmetics. 
On the placement front, there were quite a few deals in India, while Atour Lifestyle Holdings (ATAT US) was the major Asia linked offerings.


ECM Weekly (17th June 2024)-Shift Up, Webtoon, Quantum, Guzman, MaoGeping, Johor Plant, Telix, Atour

Pan-Asia Index Rebalances/ Events/ Delta One, Periscope Analytics

Brian Freitas

Pan-Asia Index Rebalances/ Events/ Delta One

Periscope Analytics

Periscope Analytics focuses on event-driven trades across Asia Pacific and provides comprehensive, timely and systematic coverage of index changes to major Asia Pacific indices in a structured manner.

The analysis includes forecasted inclusions and exclusions to all major Asian indices that have significant amount of tracking assets, including estimates of passive buy/sell flow on the stocks. The service also provides commentary and impact of market consultations, ground rule changes, and other events (IPOs, spin-offs, M&A) that could lead to index changes and passive flow.

Periscope Analytics works with multi-strategy hedge funds, proprietary trading firms, stat arb trading groups and long-only investors that invest and trade in the Asia Pacific region with the data being used to trade index rebalances, avoid pre-positioning and passive flow, and to time entry into and exit from stocks.

Event-Driven Trades Across Asia Pacific

Event-Driven

<ul>
<li>Along with its fiscal 2024 results, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/alibaba-group-holding-ltd-d7b798e2-202d-4e01-9a1e-799e2ae8f0c7" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:28434:1" rel="noopener">Alibaba (9988 HK)</a> announced that they were preparing for their primary listing in Hong Kong and the conversion was expected to complete by August.</li>
<li>If the conversion is completed by the end of August, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/alibaba-group-holding-ltd-d7b798e2-202d-4e01-9a1e-799e2ae8f0c7" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:28434:1" rel="noopener">Alibaba (9988 HK)</a> could be added to Southbound Stock Connect in September and that could bring in significant flows.</li>
<li>We do not forecast any passive inflows due to the change with <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/alibaba-group-holding-ltd-d7b798e2-202d-4e01-9a1e-799e2ae8f0c7" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:28434:1" rel="noopener">Alibaba Group Holding (9988 HK)</a> capped at 8% of the <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/hong-kong-hang-seng-index" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:22899:1" rel="noopener">HSI</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/hang-seng-china-enterprises-index" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:22900:1" rel="noopener">HSCEI</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/hang-seng-tech-index" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:31367:1" rel="noopener">HSTECH</a> indices.</li>
</ul>


Along with its fiscal 2024 results, Alibaba (9988 HK) announced that they were preparing for their primary listing in Hong Kong and the conversion was expected to complete by August.
If the conversion is completed by the end of August, Alibaba (9988 HK) could be added to Southbound Stock Connect in September and that could bring in significant flows.
We do not forecast any passive inflows due to the change with Alibaba Group Holding (9988 HK) capped at 8% of the HSI, HSCEI and HSTECH indices.


Alibaba (9988 HK): Dual Primary Listing & Potential Southbound Flows

Greater China Equity Long/Short Analyst

Eric Chen

<ul>
<li>A stabilizing property market matters more than other factors such as industry rivalry and shareholder return policies for the performance of leading China e-commerce players in our view.</li>
<li>China's worst property market downturn is probably behind us. This will gradually help restore consumer confidence and lift consumer propensity to spend, improving growth outlook for China e-commerce sector.</li>
<li>We believe China e-commerce players will in general benefit from a stabilizing housing market. Alibaba remains the most attractive play in the space. </li>
</ul>


A stabilizing property market matters more than other factors such as industry rivalry and shareholder return policies for the performance of leading China e-commerce players in our view.
China's worst property market downturn is probably behind us. This will gradually help restore consumer confidence and lift consumer propensity to spend, improving growth outlook for China e-commerce sector.
We believe China e-commerce players will in general benefit from a stabilizing housing market. Alibaba remains the most attractive play in the space. 


China E-Commerce: Stabilizing Property Market Matters a Lot

China

JD.com Inc is an online direct sales company in China.  The Company offers a wide selection of products through its website and mobile applications.  JD.com sells appliances, computers, digital products, communication products, garments, books, and household items to consumers and vendors.

Alibaba Group Holding Limited provides online sales services. The Company provides internet infrastructure, electronic commerce, online financial, and internet content services through its subsidiaries. Alibaba Group Holding offers its products and services worldwide.

PDD Holdings Inc. is a multinational commerce group that owns and operates a portfolio of businesses. The Company focuses on digital economy so that local communities and small businesses can benefit from the increased productivity and new opportunities. PDD Holdings has built a network of sourcing, logistics, and fulfillment capabilities for its underlying businesses.

Prosus N.V. provides internet based services. The Company focuses on investments in internet, digital media, e-commerce retailing, and consumer internet companies. Prosus serves customers worldwide.

Hainan Island Construction Co Ltd.  is a property development company. The Company also operates regional malls and hotels.

Guangzhou Friendship Group Co., Ltd operates supermarkets and department stores in Guangzhou, China.  The Company sells a variety of consumer products, including apparel, food and beverages, electronics, jewelry, cosmetics, and electric appliances.  Guangzhou Friendship also leases real estate properties.

Guangzhou Friendship Group Co, Ltd. (000987 CH)

Golden Eagle Retail Group Limited operates department stores in China. The Company's stores target mid-range and high-end market segments in China, and contain various functions and amenities such as dining, entertainment, beauty and personal care, cinemas, and preschool education in addition to their core function as an international department store.

Tianjin Quanye Bazaar (Group) Co., Ltd. owns and operates department stores and supermarkets, as well as sells general merchandise on a wholesale basis. Tianjin Quanye also provides storage and cargo delivery services, and invests in real estate and interior decoration businesses.

Xian International Medical Investment Co Ltd is principally engaged in the medical services industry.

Xian International Medical Invest (000516 CH)

Dollar General Corporation operates a chain of discount retail stores located primarily in the southern, southwestern, midwestern, and eastern United States. The Company offer a broad selection of merchandise, including consumable products such as food, paper and cleaning products, health, beauty, pet supplies, and non-consumables such as seasonal merchandise.

Trent Limited operates a chain of retail stores that sell fashion apparel, cosmetics, perfumery products and toiletry items. The Company sells apparel for men, women and children. Trent sells its cosmetics products under the "Westside" and "Trent" brand names.

Dollar Tree, Inc. operates a discount variety store chain in the United States. The Company sells an assortment of everyday general merchandise at the $1.00 price point.

Pan Pacific International Holdings Corporation operates discount stores which sell consumer electronics, daily necessities, groceries, watches, and sporting goods. The Company mostly operates small scale stores based in Tokyo.

Pan Pacific International Holdings (7532 JP)

Target Corporation operates general merchandise discount stores. The Company focuses on merchandising operations which includes general merchandise and food discount stores and a fully integrated online business. Target also offers credit to qualified applicants through its branded proprietary credit cards.

Naspers Limited operates in the technology industry. The Company invests in global internet companies across the world.

Next Plc conducts retailing, home shopping, and customer services management operations.  The Company's retail stores sell ladies wear, mens wear, childrens wear, and housewares.

Avenue Supermarts Ltd. (ASL) owns and operates hypermarkets and supermarkets. The Company offers products such as garments, footwears, toys and games, bed and bath linen, stationery, grocery, household, and electronic products. ASL operates throughout India.

Dollarama Inc. operates as an online marketplace. The Company offers cleaning, school, office, home, kitchen, food, health, beauty, hardware, electronics, toys, and pets products, as well as provides delivery services. Dollarama serves customers in Canada.

MercadoLibre, Inc. operates an online trading site for the Latin American markets. The Company's website allows businesses and individuals to list items, conduct sales, and purchases online in either a fixed-price and auction format. MercadoLibre offers classified advertisements for motor vehicles, vessels, aircraft, and real estate, as well as online payment services.

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Alibaba Group Holding (9988 HK)

[Blue Lotus E-Commerce Sector Update]: Tax Reform a Light at the End of the Tunnel for Ecommerce

June sales pulled into May led to disappointing June NBS data. Online retail grew 5.1% yoy in May/June and 6.4% yoy in 2Q24. PDD led in GMV...

Blue Lotus Research Institute

Tech Supply Chain Tracker (28-Jun-2024): Humanoid robot develpment status.

Robot development advances with AI, mobility, and interaction improvements; China cloud spending to surge; Polish photonics foundation solidified;...

Tech Supply Chain Tracker

ECM Weekly (17th June 2024)-Shift Up, Webtoon, Quantum, Guzman, MaoGeping, Johor Plant, Telix, Atour

Aequitas Research's weekly update on the IPOs, placements, lockup expiry and other ECM linked events that were covered by the team over the past week.

Sumeet Singh

Alibaba (9988 HK): Dual Primary Listing & Potential Southbound Flows

Alibaba expect to convert to a Primary Listing on the HKEX by end August. That could mean inclusion in Southbound Stock Connect in September. With...

Brian Freitas

China E-Commerce: Stabilizing Property Market Matters a Lot

The worst slump of China property market is probably behind us, which should slowly remove the key drag on China e-commerce sector. Alibaba is best...

Eric Chen

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52-week Range

Market Cap (USDm)

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[Blue Lotus E-Commerce Sector Update]: Tax Reform a Light at the End of the Tunnel for Ecommerce

​June sales pulled into May led to disappointing June NBS data. Online retail grew 5.1% yoy in May/June and 6.4% yoy in 2Q24. PDD led in GMV...

Blue Lotus Research Institute

Tech Supply Chain Tracker (28-Jun-2024): Humanoid robot develpment status.

Robot development advances with AI, mobility, and interaction improvements; China cloud spending to surge; Polish photonics foundation solidified;...

Tech Supply Chain Tracker

ECM Weekly (17th June 2024)-Shift Up, Webtoon, Quantum, Guzman, MaoGeping, Johor Plant, Telix, Atour

Aequitas Research's weekly update on the IPOs, placements, lockup expiry and other ECM linked events that were covered by the team over the past week.

Sumeet Singh

Alibaba (9988 HK): Dual Primary Listing & Potential Southbound Flows

Alibaba expect to convert to a Primary Listing on the HKEX by end August. That could mean inclusion in Southbound Stock Connect in September. With...

Brian Freitas

China E-Commerce: Stabilizing Property Market Matters a Lot

The worst slump of China property market is probably behind us, which should slowly remove the key drag on China e-commerce sector. Alibaba is best...

Eric Chen

June sales pulled into May led to disappointing June NBS data. Online retail grew 5.1% yoy in May/June and 6.4% yoy in 2Q24. PDD led in GMV...