Alan Long

TradingKey - The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics will release the July non-farm payrolls report at 8:30 AM ET on August 7. Current market focus is centered not only on employment growth but also on the unemployment rate, average hourly earnings, and whether data from the previous two months will be revised downward again. These indicators will directly impact Federal Reserve rate hike expectations for September, as well as the trajectory of U.S. stocks, the U.S. Dollar, and gold (XAUUSD).

TradingKey - As of Thursday (August 6) ET, futures for the three major US stock indices showed mixed performance in pre-market trading. Dow and S&P 500 futures edged higher, while Nasdaq 100 futures remained under pressure as the market continued to digest pullback pressures following AI capital expenditures, chip stock valuations, and earnings reports in the memory sector. Investors are also awaiting data on initial jobless claims, Q2 non-farm productivity, and unit labor costs to assess the latest shifts in US employment and inflationary pressures.

TradingKey - Due to persistent global DRAM memory supply constraints, market reports indicate that TSMC (TSM) is facing packaging delays for Apple processor orders valued at approximately $1 billion. The primary cause is a shortage of supporting memory supply, which has prevented some chips from completing final packaging as originally scheduled. This news once again underscores how the supply-demand imbalance in memory chips driven by the AI wave is spreading across the entire semiconductor supply chain.

TradingKey - As of August 5, Eastern Time, SanDisk (SNDK) released its fourth-quarter fiscal results after the U.S. market close. Although the company’s fourth-quarter performance significantly exceeded market expectations and its AI data center business maintained high-speed growth, SanDisk's shares experienced profit-taking, plunging 8% in after-hours trading. The decline follows a period where the market had already priced in expectations for AI storage growth, leading to excessive cumulative gains, while next-quarter guidance failed to fully meet the expectations of some investors.

TradingKey - As demand for AI chips continues to surge, CoWoS advanced packaging capacity has once again become a market focal point. According to market sources, due to the continuous increase in orders from AI chip customers such as Nvidia (NVDA) and AMD (AMD), TSMC's (TSM) existing CoWoS advanced packaging capacity is nearing full utilization. The company is further expanding its outsourcing capacity to meet future supply demand for AI accelerators.

TradingKey - On Tuesday (August 4) ET, the three major U.S. stock index futures rose collectively in pre-market trading, with Nasdaq 100 futures leading the gains. Overnight, U.S. stocks rebounded, driven by a recovery in AI trades and a temporary easing of tensions in the Middle East, as the Dow closed at a record high. In today's pre-market session, Palantir (PLTR) surged following its earnings report, further reinforcing the AI software theme. However, conflicting signals from U.S.-Iran negotiations, a rebound in oil prices, and the upcoming release of JOLTS job openings data have kept market sentiment cautious.

TradingKey - Before the market opened on August 4 (ET), the U.S. storage sector strengthened collectively. Micron Technology (MU) rose more than 3%, SanDisk (SNDK) climbed approximately 3%, and SK Hynix ADR (SKHY) gained over 2%. Previously, Micron's share price underwent a significant correction, retreating more than 30% from its all-time high, as the market grew concerned about a cooling AI storage trend. However, with sentiment in the storage sector recovering, capital is refocusing on recovery opportunities for Micron's stock price.

TradingKey - On August 4, according to market sources, the three major DRAM memory chip manufacturers—Micron Technology (MU), Samsung Electronics, and SK Hynix—have already completed part of their capacity allocation for 2027 in advance. This indicates that global demand for high-performance memory remains robust, particularly the demand for HBM and high-end DRAM driven by AI servers, which is further tightening the supply landscape in the memory industry.

TradingKey - As of August 3 (ET), SpaceX (SPCX) shares staged a rebound, closing up 5.68% and ending its recent period of correction. Previously, SPCX retreated from its post-listing high of $225.64 to a low near $104.83, a cumulative decline of over 50%, with its market capitalization shrinking significantly from its peak. With the company set to release its first quarterly earnings report since listing after the market close on Tuesday, the market has turned its focus back to SpaceX's profitability, Starlink's growth pace, and Starship's commercialization progress, prompting some capital to position ahead of the results.

TradingKey - AMD (AMD) will report its fiscal second-quarter 2026 financial results after the market closes on August 4 ET. The latest share price stands at $476.15, having retreated approximately 12% from its June highs, though it remains up by more than 100% year-to-date.

TradingKey - On Monday, August 3 (ET), the three major U.S. stock index futures rose collectively in pre-market trading. U.S. President Trump announced a suspension of attacks on Iran and a shift toward diplomatic negotiations, driving a sharp decline in oil prices and cooling energy inflation conce

TradingKey - As of the European session on August 3, USD/JPY was trading near 156.70, having dropped sharply to 155.20 during the session before recovering some of its losses. Last week, USD/JPY approached 164.00, hitting a high of approximately 40 years, but the exchange rate has since retreated fo

TradingKey - As of the Asian trading session on August 3, WTI Crude Oil (USOIL) prices plunged, breaking below the $80 level with an intraday decline of more than 9%, while Brent Crude Oil (UKOIL) fell by over 8% in tandem. Last week, the oil market was supported by supply disruption risks in the Middle East. However, prices retreated under pressure at this week’s opening following Trump’s statement on Saturday regarding the suspension of new military strikes against Iran, as well as the OPEC+ announcement to continue increasing production.

TradingKey - In the coming week, global markets will focus on U.S. employment data, Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) readings, and a new round of intensive U.S. corporate earnings reports. The U.S. will release the July non-farm payrolls report, ADP employment data, and the ISM Manufacturing and Services indices. Investors will use these indicators to gauge whether the U.S. economy remains resilient and whether the Federal Reserve will need to further tighten monetary policy at its September meeting.

TradingKey - As of July 30, Eastern Time, Bitcoin (BTC) was trading near $64,500, extending its rebound from the previous two trading sessions. Bitcoin recently bounced back from a periodic low of $57,800 in early July and briefly approached $67,000, but upward momentum subsequently weakened, and it is currently fluctuating within the $63,000 to $65,000 range. Overall, short-term sentiment for Bitcoin has significantly improved compared to late June. However, volatile ETF capital flows, the Federal Reserve's maintained hawkish stance, and cooling corporate demand for purchases suggest that this rally is currently more characteristic of an oversold rebound rather than the start of a new bull market trend.

TradingKey - As of July 29, Eastern Time, Intel (INTC) shares have seen a cumulative pullback of over 30% from their late June peak, entering a technical correction zone. Despite the company’s recently released fiscal 2026 second-quarter results beating market expectations across the board and an upward revision to its third-quarter guidance, the stock failed to sustain its previous rally and has instead continued to face pressure.

TradingKey - On Friday (July 31) Eastern Time, the three major U.S. stock index futures rose collectively in pre-market trading, with Nasdaq 100 futures leading the gains. Amazon's (AMZN) earnings report strengthened market confidence in AI cloud demand and the earnings resilience of tech stocks, driving a rebound in chip stocks and AI infrastructure plays. However, Apple's (AAPL) sharp post-earnings decline, coupled with a rising U.S. dollar and Treasury yields, continued to limit the further expansion of market risk appetite.

TradingKey - Pre-market on July 31, ET, the U.S. semiconductor sector saw a significant rebound, with Micron Technology (MU), SanDisk (SNDK), SK Hynix ADR (SKHY), Nvidia (NVDA), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), and Intel (INTC) all rising across the board. However, despite month-end fund inflows driving a technical recovery in chip stocks, the overall semiconductor sector is still set to record its worst monthly performance since 2002 in July, indicating that market sentiment toward the AI industry chain has not yet fully recovered.

TradingKey - Japanese NAND flash manufacturer Kioxia reported its first-quarter fiscal 2026 results on Friday. Driven by demand from AI data centers, the company’s profit saw significant growth but fell slightly short of the market expectation of 1.37 trillion yen. Additionally, its second-quarter operating profit guidance of 1.89 trillion yen was lower than the Bloomberg consensus estimate of 1.95 trillion yen. However, the company expects NAND flash prices to continue rising in the second quarter, indicating that the memory industry's upcycle is likely to extend into the third quarter.

TradingKey - On July 30, Eastern Time, Amazon (AMZN) announced its second quarter fiscal 2026 financial results. Boosted by the accelerating growth of its AWS cloud computing business, continued high growth in its advertising business, and overall performance that exceeded market expectations across the board, Amazon's stock price surged over 9% at one point in after-hours trading. This earnings report not only alleviated previous market concerns regarding a slowdown in AWS growth but also reaffirmed that demand for AI infrastructure remains in a phase of rapid expansion.