SHANGHAI, Feb 12 (Reuters) - Hong Kong shares rose on Wednesday, led by a rally in Alibaba shares, as the market was fuelled by AI-driven revaluation opportunities. China stocks were roughly flat.
** China's blue-chip CSI300 Index .CSI300 edged down 0.1% by the lunch break, while the Shanghai Composite Index .SSEC were flat. Hong Kong benchmark Hang Seng .HSI was up 1.4%.
** Alibaba's Hong Kong shares 9988.HK surged 6.7%, hitting a four-month peak on Wednesday, after the Information reported Apple AAPL.O is partnering with the Chinese tech giant to roll out artificial intelligence features for iPhone users in China.
** Baidu shares 9888.HK fell 3.5%. Apple had selected Baidu as its main partner last year, but the Chinese company's progress in developing models for Apple Intelligence fell short of its standards, the report said.
** Tech major traded in Hong Kong .HSTECH rose 1.2%, with Lenovo Group 0992.HK and BYD Electronic 0285.HK up 4.6% and 6.2%, respectively.
** "Technology fuelled rallies typically saw share prices rise ahead of earnings and this year, with ample liquidity and lower interest rates, we see valuation re-rating opportunities ahead for AI-related names," said UBS strategist James Wang.
** "The internet companies are likely to be longer-term beneficiaries of cheaper AI models and remain attractive given the cheap valuation and capital return initiatives on offer," Wang said.
** AI-shares traded onshore .CSI930713 were up 0.9%, outperforming other sectors.
** Global investors are starting to reassess China's investability within the tech and AI space, as U.S.-China competition has expanded from trade or tariffs to high-end manufacturing and AI, said equity strategists at Morgan Stanley.
** Shares of Chinese bubble tea maker Guming 1364.HK were roughly flat on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange trading debut after the company raised $232 million in an initial public offering.
(Reporting by Shanghai Newsroom; Editing by Eileen Soreng)
((li.gu@tr.com))
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