The Hang Seng index bounced back this week after China reported strong fourth-quarter economic numbers. It rose to a high of H$19,500, up from Monday’s low of H$18,680. So, what next for the blue-chip Hang index?

Strong China GDP data

The Chinese economy rebounded in the fourth quarter, helped by the government’s stimulus measures and exports. 

According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the economy expanded by 5.4% in Q4 after growing by 4.6% in the third quarter. This recovery was better than the median estimate of 5.0%.

The economy expanded by 1.6% on a quarter-on-quarter basis, after growing by 1.3% in the previous quarter. This growth means that China hit its annual growth target of 5.0%.

More data showed that fixed asset investments rose by 3.2%, lower than the median estimate of 3.3%. 

China’s industrial production rose by 6.2% in December, while retail sales rose by 3.7%, higher than the median estimate of 3.5%. 

These numbers mean the Chinese economy is doing better than most analysts expected. It is also a sign that the stimulus measures have started to work and the slow growth of the last few years has ended. 

Still, Chinese bond yields continued falling as analysts anticipate more stimulus from the People’s Bank of China (PBoC). The 30-year yield dropped to 1.87%, while the 10-year yield has fallen to 1.645%. The yield has dropped for 35 consecutive days, the longest plunge in years. 

Still, some analysts warn that China is going through a rough patch. In an X post, Kyle Bass, a popular American hedge fund manager, said that China was still experiencing a complete financial crash. He cited the overnight policy rate and the ongoing real estate crash. 

Trade war risks remain

The Hang Seng index rose after a report from the United States showed that core consumer inflation data dropped in December. That report led to a strong surge in the stock market as investors anticipated a somewhat dovish Fed. 

A key risk for the Hang Seng index is the upcoming Donald Trump inauguration and the potential implications of the market. Trump has pledged to impose major tariffs to help reboot American manufacturing. In line with this, he wants to create an external revenue service that will be tasked with implementing these tariffs. 

Tingyi, SMIC, NetEase, and Zijin Mining Group are the best-performing Hang Seng index stocks this year. MTR, Citic Pacific, China Construction Bank, and China Mengniu Dairy are the top laggards in the index this year.

Hang Seng index analysis

The daily chart shows that the Hang Seng index has bounced back and crossed the 100-day exponential moving average on the daily chart. 

It has moved between the 38.2% and 50% Fibonacci Retracement levels, a positive sign. Another bullish sign is that the index has formed a falling wedge chart pattern, often leading to a strong bullish breakout. 

Therefore, Hong Kong stocks will likely bounce back in the next few weeks, and possibly move above the key resistance at H$20,000. A drop below the support at H$19,000 will invalidate the bullish view.

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The Nifty 50 index retreated to its lowest level since June 7 last year as the Indian rupee continued its downtrend against the US dollar. It also dropped as several prominent Indian companies published weak financial results. It has moved to ₹23,200, down by almost 12% from the highest level in 2024.

Indian rupee has crashed 

The Nifty 50 index continued its downtrend as concerns about the Indian economy continued. That explains why the Indian rupee has continued crashing in the past few months. Data shows that the USD/INR exchange rate has risen to a record high of 86.50, up from last year’s low of 82.65.

The Indian rupee has crashed against the US dollar for several reasons. First, the US dollar index jumped to $110 after the Federal Reserve turned hawkish in its last meeting. The bank slashed interest rates by 0.25% and hinted that it would deliver two cuts later this year.

Second, there are concerns that the Indian economy has slowed in the past few months. The most recent data showed that the Indian GDP grew by 5.4% in the third quarter, lower than expected. As such, there are concerns that the Indian economy will not hit the 7% target it has been used to before. 

Further, the Indian rupee has crashed in line with the ongoing retreat of emerging market currencies. Some of the most notable currencies that have crashed recently are the Chinese yuan, Turkish lira, and the South African rand. 

A weaker Indian rupee has an impact on the country’s stocks. Some, like technology companies Infosys, TCS, and L&T Tech that do a lot of business abroad do well since they are paid in the US dollar and report in the Indian rupee. 

However, a weaker rupee negatively impacts local companies that import many raw materials from foreign countries. 

The Nifty 50 index has also retreated after the recent earnings misses by some Indian tech companies.

Firms like Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys, and Tech Mahindra have announced results that missed analysts estimates. Just last week, analysts at HSBC downgraded Indian stocks, citing their inflation numbers. 

Looking ahead, the next key earnings to watch will be Zomato, ICICI, Aditya Birla, Trident, HDFC Bank, Interglobe Aviation, Tata Communications, and Adani Green Energy. 

Nifty 50 index analysis

Nifty chart by TradingView

The daily chart shows that the Nifty 50 index peaked at ₹26,255 in 2024 and then pulled back sharply in the past few weeks. It has dropped to a low of ₹23,200, its lowest level since June last year.

The index is about to form a death cross pattern as the 200-day and 50-day Exponential Moving Aveages (EMA) cross each other. Also, the MACD and the Relative Vigor Index (RVI) have continued falling. 

The index has formed a head and shoulders chart pattern, a popular bearish sign. Therefore, the Nifty index will likely continue falling as sellers target the next key support at ₹20,000, down by almost 40% from the current level.

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Chainlink price has staged a strong recovery in the past few days as investors cheered some of Donald Trump’s policies and its growing ecosystem. LINK token rose for four straight days, reaching its highest swing since January 6. It has risen by 34% from its lowest level this month. So, what next for Chainlink as the crypto boom resumes?

Chainlink’s ecosystem is growing

Chainlink, the biggest oracle network in crypto, has continued to grow its ecosystem, becoming one of the most diverse projects in the industry. 

Initially, it was an oracle project that moves off-chain data to the on-chain. Some of the biggest players in crypto projects like AAVE and Compound embraced it.

Recently, it has launched other solutions that have become popular among developers. For example, it launched the cross-chain interoperability protocol (CCIP), which is a standard that enables developers to build secure applications that can transfer tokens and messages across different chains. 

CCIP is an important part of the growing industry of Real World Asset (RWA) tokenization. Analysts expect that the industry was valued at $2.3 billion in 2021 and that it would surge to over $5.6 billion by 2026. McKinsey expects that assets worth over $2 trillion will be tokenized by 2030, while other analysts place the number at $10 trillion. 

Chainlink has been embraced by numerous companies its technology. The most notable ones are Swift Society, which is owned by some of the biggest banks globally. Swift handles over $150 trillion in transactions annually. 

Chainlink has also partnered with other companies like Coinbase, Emirates NBD, UBS, and ANZ Bank. 

The company recently launched the Cross-Chain Token (CCT) standard that streamlines token transfers across blockchains using CCIP. Several cryptocurrencies like Shiba Inu and Floki have embraced this standard. The latest CCIP upgrade went live this week.

Chainlink price may do well in the coming months as more crypto and corporates join its ecosystem. 

At the same time, the United States has committed to become more crypto friendly under Donald Trump. According to Bloomberg, the administration plans to elevate crypto as a national priority. He will sign an executive order that will create a crypto advisory council and guide government agencies to work with the industry.

Trump’s policies significantly differ from those promoted by Joe Biden whose SEC went to war with the industry. Under Gary Gensler, the agency filed over 86 lawsuits against companies like Ripple and Binance.

Trump also wants to prioritize American crypto projects as it creates a reserve fund. Chainlink will likely be one of the top projects if this happens. There are also chances that Chainlink will have its spot ETFs this year, a crucial factor now that LINK balances on exchanges have fallen.

Chainlink price forecast

The daily chart shows that the LINK token price has formed several bullish chart patterns that may push it higher in the coming months. 

Chainlink has formed a cup and handle chart pattern, which is characterized by a vertical line and a rounded bottom. It is one of the most popular bullish patterns in the market. 

LINK price has also formed a bullish flag chart pattern, a popular continuation sign. This pattern comprises a long vertical line and a falling cannel that resembles a flag. 

Therefore, Chainlink will likely have a strong bullish breakout. Bulls target the next resistance at $31, which was reached on December 13, at its highest swing. This target is about 30% above the current level. A move above that level will likely see it surge to the next crucial resistance level at $50.

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EVgo stock price has crashed hard in the past few months, erasing some of the gains made in the fourth quarter. After soaring to a high of $9.07 on October 25 last year, it has plunged by 60% to the current $3.57. It has moved to its lowest level since August. So, is the EVgo a good stock to buy as it forms a death cross?

Why EVgo share price has crashed

EVgo stock price has crashed after Donald Trump won the election, a move that could affect investments in the EV charging industry. Under Biden, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) allocated billions of dollars to expand and improve the charging industry, a move that benefited the company. It received a $1.05 billion conditional loan from the Department of Energy (DoE).

The stock has also crashed because of the recent fires in Los Angeles, where the company has hundreds of stations. These fires have likely destroyed many of its stations and incinerated many electric vehicles. 

Still, EVgo has some of the best fundamentals and is seeing substantial growth, helped by more deployments and its partnership with General Motors. 

The company’s most recent financial results showed a record $67.5 million in revenue, a 92% increase from last year. Most of this revenue came from the charging network business, which brought in $43.1 million.

This revenue growth happened as the company’s network throughput increased from 37 GWh to 78 GWh. The firm anticipates that its network will more than double in the next few years as demand for charging infrastructure grows. 

EVgo has some of the best fundamentals in the EV charging companies in the US. It is growing faster than other companies like ChargePoint and Blink Energy. Analysts anticipate that its annual revenue for 2024 was $258 million, a 60% annual growth. It will get to $361.5 million this year, and $500 million next year. 

On the other hand, ChargePoint’s 2024 revenue will be $415 million, a 17% annual decline from a year earlier. Blink Charging’s revenue was $126.8 million, a 9.8% annual decline in 2024 and analysts expect that it will get to $158 million this year. 

Read more: EVgo stock price analysis: risk/reward is very attractive

EVgo stock price forms a death cross

EVgo stock chart by TradingView

The daily chart shows that the EVgo share price peaked at $9.07 in October and fell to $3.50 today. Most recently, it dropped below the key support level at $4.75, its lowest level in November last year. 

The stock has formed a death cross pattern as the 50-day and 200-day Exponential Moving Averages (EMA). This is a popular pattern that often leads to a strong bearish breakout. It has also lost below the key support level at $3.82, its highest swing in December 2023. 

Therefore, technically, the stock will likely continue falling as sellers target the next key support level at $1.68, its lowest swing in April 2024. This price is about 53% below the current level.

However, this drop may be a good opportunity to buy the stock because of its growing market share in the EV charging industry. A move above the key resistance point at $4.75 will invalidate the bearish view.

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Investing in quality blue-chip ETFs can be a great way to ensuring a rich retirement. Analysts recommend investing in ETFs that combine growth, value, and regular dividends. This article looks at some of the best SWAN blue-chip ETFs to buy and hold for a rich retirement. SWAN stands for sleep well at night. 

Grayscale Mini Bitcoin Trust (BTC)

The Grayscale Mini Bitcoin Trust is one of the best blue-chip ETFs to buy and hold for a rich retirement. That’s because Bitcoin has some of the best features in that it is in a high demand while its supply is in a freefall. There will only be 21 million Bitcoins, most of which have been mined and held by investors. 

Bitcoin also has a long record of doing well and beating American equities. It has jumped from near zero in 2009 to over $100,000, and this trend may go on for a long time. Some analysts anticipate that the price will surge to over $1 million in the next decade. 

Buying and holding Bitcoin in a private wallet is one of the best ways to invest in the coin because it will not cost you any money. If you have to buy a Bitcoin ETF, Grayscale’s mini fund, which has $3.9 billion in assets is the best fund to buy. 

The BTC fund has an expense ratio of 0.15%, making it the cheapest ETF in the industry. It is much cheaper than the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), which charges a 0.25% fee. A $100,000 investment in BTC will cost $150, while a similar allocation in IBIT will cost $250 annually. Why pay more for a similar investment?

iShares S&P 500 (IVV) or Vanguard S&P 500 (VOO)

The other best blue-chip ETF to buy and hold for a SWAN retirement is either the IVV or the VOO. These popular funds track the S&P 500 index and charge the same expense ratio of 0.03%. The ETF is slightly cheaper than the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), which charges about 0.09%. 

The S&P 500 index tracks the biggest companies in the United States, including popular brands like NVIDIA, Microsoft, and Alphabet. These are all some of the most important companies globally because of their services. 

The S&P 500 index has a long track record of performance and beating other American exchange-traded funds. While the fund regularly drops, such as during the dot com bubble and the Global Housing Crisis, it always bounces back. 

IVV and VOO ETF investors might also consider allocating cash in funds tracking the Nasdaq 100 index. 

Pacer US Cash Cows 100 ETF (COWZ)

The Pacer US Cash Cows 100 ETF is another blue-chip ETF to consider because of what it does. It is a fund that invests in 100 companies that have a record of growing their free cash flows, one of the most important metrics in a company’s books.

It is a fairly balanced fund made up of companies from most sectors. Energy companies account for 24% of the fund, followed by companies in the technology, consumer discretionary, and healthcare industries. The biggest names in the fund are names like EOG Resources, Valero Energy, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, and Haliburton. 

VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF (MOAT)

The other blue-chip ETF to consider is the MOAT ETF, which comprises companies with large industry moats. In other words, it looks at companies that have a large competitive advantage against their peers. 

Most of these companies are in the health care, industrials, technology, and consumer staples industry. Some of the most notable members of the portfolio are names like Alphabet, Disney, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Gilead Sciences, and Teradyne. 

The benefit of investing in this fund is that it often beats the S&P 500 index and is uncorrelated with it.

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