【Pre-Market US Stocks】Meta's Entry Into Cloud Computing Drags Chip Stocks Further Down, Micron Falls Over 2%, Crucial Non-Farm Payrolls Data Looming Large.
On July 2, Eastern Time, U.S. stock index futures displayed mixed performance, while the semiconductor and optical communications sectors faced heavy selling pressure following Meta's cloud computing expansion. Meta’s shift to selling surplus AI power raised concerns over external procurement, hitting chip manufacturers like Micron and Intel. Conversely, gold prices rose as oil continued to decline. Investors are now focused on the upcoming U.S. June nonfarm payrolls report. With Fed officials signaling data-dependent policy, strong employment data could heighten rate-hike expectations, potentially triggering further volatility in interest-rate-sensitive growth stocks as the market remains range-bound.
TradingKey - On July 2, Eastern Time, in U.S. pre-market trading, the three major stock index futures were mixed. As of press time, Dow Jones futures rose 0.18%, S&P 500 futures fell 0.01%, and Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.28%.
[Source: CME Group]
In commodities, gold and silver prices rose. As of press time, spot gold ( XAUUSD) was quoted at $4,068/oz, up 0.92%; spot silver ( XAGUSD) was quoted at $59.83/oz, up 1.21%.
International oil prices continued to edge lower. As of press time, WTI crude futures were quoted at $67.45/barrel, down 1.66%; Brent crude futures were quoted at $70.53/barrel, down 1.45%.
In the crypto market, as of press time, Bitcoin (BTC) was trading around $61,240, and Ethereum (ETH) was trading around $1,645. The US Dollar Index was at 101.40.
Market Movement
The memory chip sector extended losses premarket. As of press time, SanDisk ( SNDK) fell over 3%, Western Digital ( WDC ), Micron Technology ( MU ), Seagate Technology ( STX) fell over 2%.
The optical communications sector fell collectively premarket. Corning ( GLW ), Coherent ( COHR ), Lumentum ( LITE) fell nearly 2%.
The semiconductor sector was under pressure overall. Marvell Technology ( MRVL) fell about 2.2%, Advanced Micro Devices ( AMD ), Intel ( INTC) fell over 1.5%.
Large-cap tech stocks diverged premarket. Apple ( AAPL) rose 0.33%, Amazon ( AMZN) rose 0.22%, Microsoft ( MSFT) rose 0.71%, Tesla ( TSLA) rose 0.54%, SpaceX ( SPCX) rose 0.41%, Meta ( META) rose 0.23%, Nvidia ( NVDA) fell 0.74%, Alphabet Class A ( GOOGL) fell 0.79%.
Market Headlines
Meta to sell computing power, sending chip sector into a tailspin. Meta is planning to build a cloud computing business, with plans to lease or sell its surplus AI computing power. Following the news, Meta shares rose over 8%. However, market concerns that Meta might scale back its future procurement of external computing power sent the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index plunging 6.27%. Micron Technology fell 10.57%, SanDisk dropped over 10%, and Intel slid more than 9%. The panic spread to the Asia-Pacific region, where South Korea's KOSPI index plummeted on Thursday, triggering a circuit breaker as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix both suffered heavy losses.
Nvidia introduces revenue-sharing model for AI factories. Nvidia announced it will partner with AI cloud service providers to build large-scale, multi-tenant AI factories through revenue-sharing and credit-support mechanisms. This model is designed to lower financing barriers for AI cloud providers constructing data centers, while creating recurring revenue for Nvidia that is tied to computing power utilization.
SoftBank establishes SB Neo to enter US AI cloud market. SoftBank Group and SoftBank Corp. announced the formation of a joint venture, SB Neo Inc., with SoftBank Corp. holding a 51% stake and its parent SoftBank Group holding 49%. Leveraging SoftBank Group's 10-gigawatt-class energy and AI infrastructure, the company plans to officially launch new cloud services in fiscal year 2027. If the expansion goes smoothly, the annual operating profit of SoftBank's telecom unit could rise to between 3 trillion and 4 trillion yen.
OpenAI proposes transferring 5% stake to US government. According to the Financial Times, OpenAI is discussing transferring an approximately 5% stake to the US government, which would be valued at about $42.6 billion based on its $852 billion valuation. The proposal aims to ease regulatory pressure and remains in the early stages of discussion.
US June nonfarm payrolls report to be released early. Affected by the Independence Day holiday, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics will release the June nonfarm payrolls report at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time. The market consensus projects an addition of 113,000 jobs and an unemployment rate of 4.3%. Goldman Sachs forecasts an increase of 140,000 jobs, noting that the World Cup could contribute an additional 40,000 positions.
Fed Chairman Warsh: Inflation "remains too high." Speaking at the ECB Forum in Portugal, Warsh stated that current U.S. inflation levels remain too high, while announcing the abandonment of forward guidance on interest rates in favor of a decision-making model dependent on real-time data. Warsh did not offer any signals regarding the July policy meeting.
Key Events Preview
Eastern Time | Event |
July 2, 8:30 | U.S. June Nonfarm Payrolls Report (Market expectation: +113,000, Unemployment Rate: 4.3%) |
July 3 | U.S. Independence Day Holiday, U.S. stock markets closed |
July 7 | SpaceX officially added to the Nasdaq 100 Index |
Sector rotation triggered by Meta's cloud business continues to brew. Chip stocks remain under pressure as capital migrates from AI hardware to software and internet sectors. Tonight's nonfarm payrolls data is the real focus. If employment exceeds expectations, rate hike expectations for the Federal Reserve will heat up, and rate-sensitive tech growth stocks may face another sell-off. If the data is weak, it is expected to bring a breathing window for the chip sector. Ahead of the data release, the market is highly likely to maintain a volatile pattern.
This content was translated using AI and reviewed for clarity. It is for informational purposes only.
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