FILE: Hong Kong, China - Date Unknown (CGTN - No access Chinese mainland)
1. Various of Exchange Square, which houses Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX); screen showing stock market information

Shanghai, China - June 8, 2026 (CGTN - No access Chinese mainland)
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Timothy Pope, market analyst (starting with shot 1/ending with shots 3-6):
"The Hang Seng ended the session down quite significantly. Those two companies officially joined the Hang Seng Index at the close of trade on Friday and today, of course, their first official trading day on the index. Both of them, MiniMax and Zhipu AI, which trades as Knowledge Atlas Technology in Hong Kong, they both fell today in line with the broader market performance. But their presence is really crucial for the Hang Seng Index because it has faced actually a bit of criticism this year from investors for having far too little exposure to the AI boom which has seen such huge gains for peer indexes around the region.”

FILE: China - Date Unknown (CGTN - No access Chinese mainland)
3. Various of animation showing AI
4. Computing device
5. Various of animation showing AI application scenarios
6. People working in office
7. Various of animation showing AI application scenarios

Shanghai, China - June 8, 2026 (CGTN - No access Chinese mainland)
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Timothy Pope, market analyst:
"Getting these two companies on the index is really a step towards fixing that (criticism). Both stocks have gained considerable ground, especially at the end of last month when they were confirmed for inclusion on the Hang Seng, and that came after even bigger jumps when it was merely just reported in the media that this was going to happen, or was a possibility. But Hang Seng exposure is only really part of the story because being on the index also makes these companies eligible to join the StockConnect with the Chinese mainland. Not immediately, but for Zhipu AI it could happen as soon as this month if it takes the exchange's fast track. MiniMax is going to have to wait a little longer because of its company structure.”

FILE: China - Date Unknown (CGTN - No access Chinese mainland)
9. Various of humanoid robots

Shanghai, China - June 8, 2026 (CGTN - No access Chinese mainland)
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Timothy Pope, market analyst:
"In early July we are going to see a further 6 percent of Zhipu stock hit the market, and, for MiniMax, there could be a really huge shock because upwards of a third of company shares will become tradable then. And this could have a really big implication for both companies' share prices and it might just depend a lot on the market's view on AI stocks when it happens. Both have enjoyed huge gains off just a tiny fraction of their stock, with everyone else not being allowed to sell. So, in a month's time we might get a better idea of their true value, but also, I think, a useful insight into AI sentiment at the time.”

FILE: Hong Kong, China - Date Unknown (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
11. Various of traffic, pedestrians
12. Aerial shot of cityscape
13. Various of ships sailing, buildings

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index closed down over 1 percent on Monday despite the addition of two of China's leading tech firms to the benchmark index, said Timothy Pope, a market analyst for China Global Television Network (CGTN)

The Hang Seng was down 1.22 percent to close at 24,657.06 points at the close on Monday.

The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index fell 1.13 percent to end at 8,341.36 points, and the Hang Seng Tech Index fell 2.71 percent to end at 4,755.91 points.

Knowledge Atlas (Zhipu) and MiniMax, the best performing stocks on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange since they were listed in January, were added to the Hang Seng Tech Index on Monday. At current market valuations the two companies make up between 5 and 7 percent of the tech index’s value.

Although both companies’ share prices dropped on Monday in line with the broader market, their inclusion on the index was crucial to the Hong Kong exchange, where investors have been calling for more technology companies to be included.

"The Hang Seng ended the session down quite significantly. Those two companies officially joined the Hang Seng Index at the close of trade on Friday and today, of course, their first official trading day on the index. Both of them, MiniMax and Zhipu AI, which trades as Knowledge Atlas Technology in Hong Kong, they both fell today in line with the broader market performance. But their presence is really crucial for the Hang Seng Index because it has faced actually a bit of criticism this year from investors for having far too little exposure to the AI boom which has seen such huge gains for peer indexes around the region," Pope said.

"Getting these two companies on the index is really a step towards fixing that (criticism). Both stocks have gained considerable ground, especially at the end of last month when they were confirmed for inclusion on the Hang Seng, and that came after even bigger jumps when it was merely just reported in the media that this was going to happen, or was a possibility. But Hang Seng exposure is only really part of the story because being on the index also makes these companies eligible to join the StockConnect with the Chinese mainland. Not immediately, but for Zhipu AI it could happen as soon as this month if it takes the exchange's fast track. MiniMax is going to have to wait a little longer because of its company structure," he said.

The China-Hong Kong Stock Connect is a mutual market access program that allows international investors to trade eligible Mainland Chinese shares from Hong Kong and Mainland Chinese investors to trade Hong Kong-listed shares without needing separate foreign accounts.

Pope said that the two companies' share prices will be closely watched going forward, especially as more of their shares will become tradable later this year.

"In early July we are going to see a further 6 percent of Zhipu stock hit the market, and, for MiniMax, there could be a really huge shock because upwards of a third of company shares will become tradable then. And this could have a really big implication for both companies' share prices and it might just depend a lot on the market's view on AI stocks when it happens. Both have enjoyed huge gains off just a tiny fraction of their stock, with everyone else not being allowed to sell. So, in a month's time we might get a better idea of their true value, but also, I think, a useful insight into AI sentiment at the time," he said.