US Stocks Close: Nasdaq Rises 0.62% While Philadelphia Semiconductor Index Falls Over 2%; Tech Stocks Support Market, Chip and Memory Stocks Sold Off, SpaceX Breaks Issue Price; Multiple Fed Officials Speak in Succession

SpaceX (SPCX) fell 0.6% to $135.27, hitting an intraday low of $132.15, breaking below its IPO price.

Reportedly, SpaceX will release its first quarterly results since going public in August, when the share lock-up periods for the first batch of early investors will successively expire. Once the lock-up expires and these investors begin trimming their holdings, the stock price will face greater selling pressure. Although the current stock price has pulled back significantly from its high, early-stage investors still sit on substantial paper profits, and their motivation to trim holdings should not be underestimated.

SK Hynix ADR (SKHY) fell 9% to $176.46.

SK Hynix ADRs surged 27% at yesterday's close. According to data compiled by Bloomberg, the latest rally widened the premium of SK Hynix ADRs over the common shares traded in Seoul to 51%. According to confirmation from the Korea Securities Depository, the domestic South Korean shares corresponding to this ADR issuance are expected to list locally on July 29, while applications for mutual conversion between local shares and ADRs can only be submitted after the listing of these new shares.

Megacap tech stocks mostly gained, with Apple (AAPL) up 4.01%, Google (GOOGL) up 3.17%, Meta Platforms (META) up 3.07%, Amazon (AMZN) up 3.02%, Microsoft (MSFT) up 2.78%, Broadcom (AVGO) up 1.33%, and Nvidia (NVDA) up 0.33%; on the downside, SpaceX (SPCX) fell 0.60%, Tesla (TSLA) fell 0.43%, and TSMC (TSM) fell 0.17%.

[Source: FutuBull]

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index fell 2.08% to 12,398.89 points. Among its 30 constituents, 25 declined and 5 advanced. Micron Technology (MU) fell 8.02%, Marvell Technology (MRVL) fell 7.27%, Intel (INTC) fell 4.43%, AMD (AMD) fell 3.46%, and Lam Research (LRCX) fell 3.08%.

Chinese concept stocks performed strongly today, with MINISO (MNSO) up 9.37%, KE Holdings (BEKE) up 5.87%, Qifu Technology (QFIN) up 5.13%, Alibaba (BABA) up 4.79%, BOSS Zhipin (BZ) up 4.71%, Atour (ATAT) up 4.61%, and Bilibili (BILI) up 4.58%.

Anthropic Reportedly Plans to Hold IPO Investor Meetings

According to Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the matter, Anthropic is moving forward with preparations for a massive IPO, which could launch as early as October this year. Lead underwriters for the offering have already begun scheduling investor meetings over the coming weeks, following the company's prior confidential filing for the listing. Sources said Anthropic is working with Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, and JPMorgan Chase on its IPO preparations.

Apple Plans to Acquire AI Chip Firms to Address Server Chip Shortcomings

According to media reports, because its self-developed server chips struggle to support the computational demands of large language models, Apple is planning to acquire AI chip startups to bolster its AI infrastructure capabilities and reduce its reliance on Nvidia. Currently, the proprietary M2 Ultra chips powering Apple's AI servers can only handle certain workloads and lack the performance to run large models like Google's Gemini. During the development of the upgraded Siri, Apple was unable to run large models efficiently on its own servers, forcing it to rent Nvidia GPUs on Google Cloud to handle high-computing tasks. Meanwhile, delays in its next-generation proprietary server chip project (codenamed Baltra) have further driven Apple to seek acquisitions to fill the gap.

ASML Plans to Raise EUV Prices, TSMC Expresses Opposition

According to media reports, ASML plans to raise the prices of its chipmaking equipment, a move that could put it at odds with its largest customer, TSMC. It is reported that TSMC has already begun to oppose the plan. ASML's advanced EUV systems are essential for chipmakers to produce advanced semiconductors, and artificial intelligence is driving a surge in demand. ASML Chief Financial Officer Roger Dassen mentioned during the company's earnings call on Wednesday that price adjustments could be made for the company's less advanced systems—low-numerical aperture (Low-NA) EUV. He stated, 'We continue to improve the productivity of Low-NA EUV, which naturally provides quite strong runway for potential future price increases.' However, he added that due to long order lead times, any price changes would not have a pricing impact 'tomorrow.'

PayPal Receives $53 Billion Acquisition Offer from Stripe and Advent

According to two people familiar with the matter, payments company Stripe and private equity firm Advent International have jointly proposed to acquire PayPal at $60.5 per share, a deal that would value the payments company at over $53 billion. The sources said the offer was submitted earlier this month and has secured approximately $50 billion in committed financing support from banks.

Nokia and Nvidia Launch Industry's First Commercial AI-RAN Platform

Nokia and Nvidia have jointly developed the industry's first commercial artificial intelligence-driven radio access network (AI-RAN) platform. Nokia said the new network equipment will allow telecom network operators to double the amount of data transmitted over the same wireless spectrum by 2028, with a commercial release expected next year.

Fed Chairman Warsh: AI Boom Pushes Up Prices in the Short Term, but Poses No Long-Term Inflation Threat

Despite widespread concerns on Wall Street and in the corporate sector that AI infrastructure development is causing shortages of resources like chips, energy, and labor and pushing up costs, Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh recently refuted this view during a Senate hearing. Warsh acknowledged that AI investment has indeed raised some prices in the short term, but this represents a one-time price adjustment accompanied by a 'supply-side response' that will stimulate the market to increase capacity. He pointed out that this is completely different from the logic of geopolitical conflicts disrupting supply chains, and therefore will not necessarily translate into long-term inflationary pressures.

Fed's Cook: Prepared to Take Action If Inflation Does Not Slow in the Short Term

Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook stated that if clear signals of slowing inflation do not emerge in the short term, she is prepared to take action, and her stance on achieving the 2% inflation target remains unwavering. The U.S. economy overall remains resilient, but economic data over the past year show that the balance of risks for the Federal Reserve's dual mandate of 'maximum employment and price stability' has tilted toward the price stability side, with risk pressures on the employment front receding.

Williams: Current Monetary Policy Stance Remains Restrictive

New York Fed President John Williams stated that he sees multiple signs indicating inflation has peaked; therefore, despite market expectations of rate hikes in the coming months, the central bank will keep interest rates unchanged. He noted that the current monetary policy stance is expected to bring inflation down to the Federal Reserve's 2% target level.

Trump: New York State Should Immediately Change Its Data Center Policy

U.S. President Trump posted that one of the biggest drivers of future jobs is data centers. They are massive, powerful, and are 'money-making machines' for their respective states. For political reasons, New York Governor Kathy Hochul halted all data centers built or planned to be built in New York State. These companies are now looking to locate in Alabama, Florida, Texas, Arizona, and many other states. Taxes and jobs are like liquid gold! New York State made a terrible decision. All of this revenue and other benefits will flow to red states and some blue states that seek out data centers as cash cows, where taxes are lower and record jobs are being created. New York State should change its policy immediately.

Fed Beige Book: U.S. Economy Expands Moderately; Consumption Under Pressure and Outlook Remains Uncertain

The Federal Reserve's Beige Book showed that between late May and June, U.S. economic activity grew slightly to moderately in 11 of the 12 Federal Reserve districts, with the overall pace of growth largely consistent with the previous reporting period. The report noted that factors such as high oil prices dampened some consumption, with consumers reducing discretionary spending and shifting toward lower-priced goods. Tourism picked up, with World Cup-related travel boosting some regions. Manufacturing maintained moderate growth, with orders increasing in data centers, machinery, and defense. Construction and real estate activities improved slightly, with data center construction emerging as a bright spot. In addition, drilling activity in the energy sector increased, financial conditions remained generally stable, and commercial and consumer loan volumes rose moderately. However, agriculture was affected by falling commodity prices, rising costs, and tightening credit. Most contacts expect the economy to continue expanding in the coming months, though significant uncertainty remains over the outlook for fuel costs.

This content was translated using AI and reviewed for clarity. It is for informational purposes only.