Core Viewpoint - The banking sector is showing signs of recovery with improved financial metrics and a favorable investment environment, particularly for bank ETFs that track the performance of listed banks in China [4][5][6]. Group 1: Bank ETFs Performance - The Bank ETFs are designed to passively track the CSI Bank Index, which includes 42 listed banks in A-shares, with nearly 30% of the portfolio allocated to major state-owned banks like ICBC, ABC, and CCB, capturing high dividend opportunities [4]. - Approximately 70% of the portfolio focuses on high-growth joint-stock banks and city commercial banks, making it an efficient investment tool for tracking the overall banking sector [4]. - The Bank AH Preferred ETF tracks the Bank AH Index, which consists of securities listed in both A-shares and Hong Kong, employing a monthly security category conversion strategy [4]. Group 2: Financial Performance of Banks - In the first half of the year, 42 A-share listed banks achieved total operating income exceeding 2.9 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of over 1%, and a net profit attributable to shareholders of 1.1 trillion yuan, up 0.8% year-on-year [4]. - Major state-owned banks reported net profits exceeding 100 billion yuan each in the first half of the year, with non-performing loan ratios remaining low across the six major commercial banks [4]. Group 3: Sector Analysis and Outlook - The performance of state-owned banks has improved beyond expectations, with significant recovery in fee and other non-interest income growth compared to Q1, driving overall performance [5]. - Joint-stock banks are experiencing a rebound in revenue and profit growth due to stable asset quality and improved non-interest income [5]. - The banking sector is expected to see a rotation and rebound, with the overall performance of banks in the mid-year report indicating a recovery in ROE [5]. - The ranking of bank sub-sectors is as follows: joint-stock banks > city commercial banks = state-owned banks > rural commercial banks, with a strong outlook for joint-stock banks due to financial clearing and valuation recovery [5]. Group 4: Long-term Valuation Recovery - The long-term logic for systemic valuation recovery of bank stocks remains unchanged, with marginal improvements in the banking sector helping to boost market confidence [6]. - The easing of loan rate declines and continuous improvement in deposit costs are expected to support the stabilization of the banking sector's fundamentals [6]. - The attractiveness of bank stocks to medium- and long-term funds remains strong, with low interest rates and an "asset shortage" environment enhancing dividend yield and valuation advantages [6].