Jay Qian

TradingKey - Cybersecurity company CrowdStrike (CRWD) will release its second-quarter fiscal 2027 financial results after the market close on August 26 Eastern Time.

TradingKey - According to a report by The Information citing people familiar with the matter, Nvidia (NVDA) is in talks to participate in a new funding round for Perplexity at a valuation of over $30 billion. If completed, the deal would be one of its largest investments in the AI application layer, signaling the chipmaker's push to expand from a hardware supplier into a dominant player in the AI ecosystem.

TradingKey - In the coming week (August 24 to August 28), the focus of the US market will shift from the July FOMC meeting minutes to the 2026 Jackson Hole Economic Symposium hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City.

TradingKey - The expansion of AI computing power is driving up data center storage demand. Although HDDs receive less attention in AI storage discussions than high-performance storage media like HBM and NAND flash, they handle the long-term storage of AI training data, inference logs, and model versions.

TradingKey - As of the close on August 21, Eastern Time, Microsoft (MSFT) shares stood at $481.15, having rebounded about 30% from its July low of around $380 since its earnings release on July 29.

TradingKey - On August 21, US Eastern Time, according to a Bloomberg report citing people familiar with the matter, Nvidia (NVDA) is in early-stage talks with South Korean AI chip design company Rebellions, exploring potential collaboration ranging from technology licensing and equity investment to a full acquisition.

TradingKey - The IPO race between OpenAI and Anthropic has entered a critical phase. With both companies experiencing rapid revenue growth and steadily rising valuations, which firm will be the first to list on the US stock market and command a higher valuation has become a major focal point for the tech capital market in 2026. So, in this IPO race, who will ultimately emerge as the winner between OpenAI and Anthropic?

TradingKey - On August 20, Eastern Time, at a hearing held by the Nevada Transportation Authority, regulators unanimously approved Tesla (TSLA), Uber (UBER), and Waymo to operate paid driverless taxi services in Clark County. Tesla was authorized to deploy up to 5,000 Robotaxis over the next 12 months, while Uber and Waymo were each approved for 1,000 vehicles.

TradingKey - Nvidia (NVDA) has explicitly denied recent rumors that it plans to launch customized AI chips for Chinese customers by the end of the year.

TradingKey - On August 20, Eastern Time, Micron Technology (MU) announced that it will establish the "Micron Research Lab" at its headquarters in Boise, Idaho, investing approximately $10 billion over the next decade to focus on cutting-edge fields such as memory, compute architecture, packaging, and manufacturing.

TradingKey - The impact of Bessent’s intervention in the bond market faded, while Trump’s threat of sanctions against Iran pushed up oil prices and reignited inflation concerns. At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.32% to 52,759.21; the Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 1.00% to 26,06

TradingKey - On August 20, Eastern Time, SK Hynix (SKHY), in collaboration with the University of Virginia, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and several other institutions, published a paper in the premier international journal *Nature Electronics*, systematically disclosing its Co-Packaged Optics (CPO) technology roadmap for the first time. Driven by the dual catalysts of the CPO roadmap release and a 40 trillion KRW (approximately $28.6 billion) share buyback plan, SK Hynix shares closed up 12.73% for the day at 1.691 million KRW.

TradingKey - During the Asian session on August 20, market sources reported that Samsung Electronics plans to finalize and announce a shareholder return plan exceeding 100 trillion won (approximately $71.9 billion) after holding its board meeting this month.

TradingKey - During the Asian trading session on August 20, the Nikkei 225 Index extended the overnight rebound sentiment from US equities. As of writing, the Nikkei 225 Index rose 1% to 65,982.27 points, snapping a two-day sharp decline. The TOPIX Index climbed in tandem by 0.9% to 4,048.71 points. Sentiment in the Tokyo market was buoyed by the US Department of the Treasury's announcement on the previous day to expand the buyback limit on long-term bonds.

TradingKey - The U.S. Treasury Department announced market intervention measures, and the three major U.S. stock indices reversed their three-day losing streak to close higher across the board.

TradingKey - On August 18, Eastern Time, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal, OpenAI's second-quarter revenue reached $6.7 billion, up 18% quarter-on-quarter. However, its operating loss expanded from $9.3 billion in the first quarter to $12.3 billion, with the growth rate of losses far outpacing revenue growth.

TradingKey - SK Hynix (SKHY) announced on August 19 that its board of directors has approved a share repurchase plan worth 40 trillion won (approximately $28.4–28.6 billion). The company plans to repurchase a total of 24.07 million common shares in the open market over the next three months, aiming to cancel the shares and enhance shareholder returns.

TradingKey - On August 19, Asia-Pacific time, a key turning point emerged in SK Hynix's (SKHY) 2026 wage negotiations, which had previously been deadlocked over a record bonus allocation formula. According to South Korean media reports, the labor union and management have reached a tentative agreement, bringing a temporary end to the weeks-long tug-of-war.

TradingKey - During Asian trading hours on August 19, the Nikkei 225 Index fell for the second consecutive day, with early losses widening to as much as 3%. As of writing, the Nikkei 225 traded near 65,734 points, down 2.56%. The TOPIX Index also weakened, falling 2.76%.

TradingKey - Pressure from the bond market sent U.S. stocks down for a third consecutive session, with the Nasdaq plunging more than 1%.