The View Beyond: What the fragile Middle East truce means for China

The US and Iran have agreed to a two‑week ceasefire in the Middle East conflict, but the deal continues to look fragile. Markets have reacted swiftly, with crude oil prices falling sharply while gold and equity markets rebounded. However, the Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed, keeping energy supply risks firmly in focus. In this complex backdrop, how attractive is the current market risk‑reward, and how might the geopolitical landscape evolve from here?Richard Tang, China Strategist and Head of Research Hong Kong at Julius Baer, speaks with Hong Hao, Managing Partner and CIO of Lotus Asset Management, to assess the implications for global markets and China. They discuss whether investors should chase the recent rebound or stay defensive, the outlook for oil, gold, and the US dollar, and why China’s equity market has shown relative resilience. The conversation also covers China’s economic momentum, sector preferences, and the role of defensive, value, and high‑dividend stocks -- particularly Chinese banks -- in navigating ongoing geopolitical and macro uncertainty.This episode was recorded on 9 April, 2026.(00:00) - A fragile ceasefire and the market rebound (02:00) - Assessing the market risk-reward, geopolitical landscape (04:44) - Has the USD/gold long-term trend changed? (09:22) - How vulnerable is China to high oil prices? (14:58) - Green shoots in China’s economy – signal or seasonal? (19:05) - China’s consumption sector – staples vs discretionary (24:02) - Views on Chinese banks