0414 ｜Dolphin Focus

🐬 Macro/Industry

1. At 10:00 a.m. ET on Apr 13, the U.S. military imposed a naval blockade on all Iranian ports. The same day, Trump said 'appropriate' Iranian counterparts called Washington expressing strong willingness to reach a deal, though core differences remain over Tehran's nuclear program; Iran has not confirmed, and talks may restart in Pakistan on Apr 16. In the near term, oil prices are likely to stay elevated and choppy, with heightened volatility across energy, shipping, and chemicals.

2. Per China Customs, Q1 goods trade totaled RMB 11.84tn (+15% YoY), with exports at RMB 6.85tn (+11.9%) and imports at RMB 4.99tn (+19.6%). Exports of the 'new trio'—NEVs, lithium batteries, and PV—rose 77.5%, 50.4%, and 45.2%, respectively; private firms accounted for 57.3%, and shipments to BRI markets, ASEAN, and Africa grew strongly. The upside surprise underscores recovering external demand and industrial upgrading, while faster import growth vs. exports signals robust domestic demand.

🐬 Single Stocks

1. CATL and SAIC-GM-Wuling deepened their strategic tie-up, with 15 Wuling NEV models adopting CATL batteries and all swap-enabled models connecting to CATL's 'Choco-SEB' network. The partnership spans passenger and commercial lines, while jointly advancing overseas battery and swap deployments. The leader-lock deepens scale advantages in the battery-swap model, with Wuling's low-cost lineup driving swap-network volumes and CATL ensuring supply and replenishment efficiency to cut Wuling's costs and lift operating efficiency.

2. Oracle will procure 2.8GW of fuel-cell systems from Bloom Energy, with the first 1.2GW already contracted to power U.S. AI data centers. This provides stable power for projects such as 'Stargate', easing grid pressure and energy costs. Oracle locks in long-term electricity supply to support compute expansion and cost control, while Bloom secures a major order to accelerate commercialization, and both stocks closed higher last night.

🐬 Top Gainers

A-shares: Diversified financials, commercial printing, and data processing & outsourcing outperformed. These groups led the onshore market.

HK stocks: Managed healthcare, human resources & employment services, and application software outperformed. These sectors were among the day's leaders.

U.S. stocks: Cloud & data centers, hardware and equipment distributors, and application software outperformed. These groups led gains in the U.S. market.

🐬 Watch for Tomorrow

1. ASML and CATL to report results. Earnings are due tomorrow.

2. U.S. Apr NY Fed Manufacturing Index and U.S. Mar Import Price Index (MoM). Both prints are scheduled tomorrow.

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