Market Overview - On the first trading day of 2026, US stock indices showed relatively calm closing fluctuations, with significant inflows into tech stocks and a collective surge in Chinese concept stocks, buoyed by a strong start in the Hong Kong market [1][3] - The S&P 500 index rose by 0.19% to 6858.47 points, the Nasdaq Composite fell by 0.03% to 23235.63 points, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased by 0.66% to 48382.39 points [1] Chinese Tech Stocks Performance - The Nasdaq China Golden Dragon Index surged by 4.38%, marking the largest single-day increase since May 12 of the previous year [3] - Notable Chinese tech stocks included Baidu, which rose by 15.03%, Alibaba up by 6.25%, Tencent ADR increasing by 5.23%, and Netease rising by 7.22% [3] AI Sector Developments - Investors are eagerly awaiting developments from DeepSeek, which recently published a paper on a new training method called "manifold constraint hyperconnection" (mHC), seen as a significant breakthrough [3] - This has led to speculation about the release of the next-generation flagship model from DeepSeek, reminiscent of past AI advancements [3] Performance of Major Tech Companies - Major tech companies had mixed performances, with Nvidia rising by 1.26% and Apple falling by 0.31%. Tesla experienced a decline for the seventh consecutive day [5] - The overall performance of tech giants was lackluster, with Microsoft down by 2.21% and Amazon down by 1.87% [5] Stock Movements in Various Sectors - Various thematic stocks saw significant trading activity, with Micron Technology up by 10.51% and Western Digital up by 8.96%, both reaching historical highs [6] - AI energy and storage concept stocks also performed well, with Bloom Energy rising by 13.58% and NuScale Power increasing by 15.17% [6] Electric Vehicle Market Update - Tesla reported Q4 delivery data that fell short of expectations, delivering 418,227 vehicles in the last quarter and losing its title as the global leader in electric vehicle sales to BYD, which sold 2.2567 million vehicles in 2025, a 27.86% increase from 2024 [7][8] Berkshire Hathaway Insights - Warren Buffett expressed confidence in Berkshire Hathaway's long-term prospects, suggesting a high likelihood of the company existing in a hundred years, with praise for his successor Greg Abel's capabilities [9] Retail Investor Performance - A report indicated that retail investors at Interactive Brokers achieved an average return of 19.2% in 2025, outperforming the S&P 500 index's return of 16.39% [9]

Core Insights - The S&P 500, tracked by the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, achieved several all-time highs in 2025, closing with a gain of 16.6% [1] Performance Overview - The SPDR S&P 500 stock is exhibiting positive momentum, with a comparison of top-performing stocks in 2025 against previous years during President Trump's administration [2] - The S&P 500 has recorded three consecutive years of returns of 16% or better, with strong performance particularly noted in the semiconductor sector [3] Historical Context - The 2025 return of 16.6% is the fourth best among the five years Trump has been in office, and it is the worst return in the last three years, ranking as the seventh best over the past decade [5][6] - Historical returns during Trump's presidency include significant gains from top stocks, with SanDisk Corp leading at +560.2% and other notable performers like Western Digital Corp and Micron Technology [6] Sector Analysis - The semiconductor sector has been highlighted as a key area of interest, with several companies within this sector ranking among the top performers in 2025 [3][4] - Previous years under Trump's administration also saw strong performances in health care, consumer discretionary, and technology sectors, indicating a trend of sectoral strength during his terms [4] Future Outlook - Investors are hopeful for a return to strong gains similar to those seen in previous years, particularly as historical patterns suggest that the second year of presidential terms may yield lower returns [8]

Core Viewpoint - The U.S. stock market saw a significant rise in storage chip concept stocks, indicating positive market sentiment in this sector [1]. Group 1: Stock Performance - SanDisk Corp experienced a notable increase of 11.80% [2] - Micron Technology (美光科技) rose by 8.18% [2] - Western Digital (西部数据) saw a gain of 7.04% [2] - Rambus (RMBS) increased by 6.32% [2] - Seagate Technology (希捷科技) grew by 4.23% [2] - Pure Storage (PSTG) had a modest rise of 2.67% [2] - Silicon Motion (SIMO) increased by 1.90% [2]

Core Viewpoint - The storage sector in the U.S. stock market is experiencing significant gains, with major companies like SanDisk, Micron Technology, Western Digital, and Seagate Technology seeing substantial increases in their stock prices. This trend is supported by a report from Nomura Securities, which indicates that the current storage supercycle will last at least until 2027, with meaningful new supply not expected until early 2028 [1]. Group 1 - SanDisk (SNDK.US) shares surged over 11% [1] - Micron Technology (MU.US) shares rose over 8%, reaching a new historical high [1] - Western Digital (WDC.US) shares increased nearly 6% [1] - Seagate Technology (STX.US) shares climbed nearly 4% [1] Group 2 - Nomura Securities predicts that the storage supercycle, which began in the second half of this year, will continue until at least 2027 [1] - The firm emphasizes that significant new supply will not emerge until early 2028 [1] - Investors are advised to overweight storage leaders in 2026, focusing on the interplay of storage chip prices, profits, and valuations as the main investment theme [1] - Nomura expects the three major storage chip companies to achieve record high profits [1]

Core Viewpoint - The storage sector in the U.S. stock market is experiencing significant gains, with major companies like SanDisk, Micron Technology, Western Digital, and Seagate Technology seeing substantial increases in stock prices, driven by a forecasted storage supercycle lasting until at least 2027 [1] Group 1: Market Performance - SanDisk (SNDK.US) surged over 11% [1] - Micron Technology (MU.US) rose more than 8%, reaching a historical high [1] - Western Digital (WDC.US) increased nearly 6% [1] - Seagate Technology (STX.US) gained close to 4% [1] Group 2: Industry Outlook - Nomura Securities predicts that the current storage supercycle, which began in the second half of this year, will last until at least 2027 [1] - Significant new supply in the storage market is not expected until early 2028 [1] - The analyst team at Nomura suggests that investors should continue to overweight leading storage companies in 2026, focusing on the interplay of storage chip prices, profits, and valuations as the main investment theme [1] - The three major storage chip companies are expected to achieve record-high profits [1]

Group 1 - The core performance of data storage companies, including Western Digital, Micron Technology, and Seagate Technology, is highlighted, with annual gains exceeding 200% in the S&P 500 index for 2025 [2][3] - Major cloud service providers like Microsoft, Amazon, Google, and Meta are driving significant infrastructure investments, committing over $440 billion in the next 12 months to build AI infrastructure, leading to a surge in demand for high-capacity, low-cost storage solutions [3] - SanDisk, spun off from Western Digital, achieved an impressive annual gain of approximately 559% in 2025, marking a standout performance in the storage sector [3] Group 2 - The AI investment landscape is described as entering a "race for infrastructure," with market leadership shifting from chips and model platforms to supporting elements like data, storage, power, and cooling [3] - In contrast, traditional consumer and defensive sectors faced significant declines in 2025 due to economic uncertainties, inflation, and tariff concerns [3] - Consumer stocks experienced severe downturns, with Trade Desk's stock plummeting nearly 70%, and other brands like Chipotle Mexican Grill and Deckers Outdoor seeing declines of approximately 40% and 50%, respectively [4]

Group 1 - Seagate Technology Holdings plc (NASDAQ:STX) has experienced a significant stock price increase of 98.31% over the past 6 months, with a bullish outlook from Wall Street [1] - Analysts from Mizuho Securities and Benchmark have both raised their price targets for Seagate, with Mizuho increasing it from $270 to $337 and Benchmark from $255 to $325, while maintaining a Buy rating [2][4] - Benchmark analysts project that Seagate will exceed a 50% gross margin target by 2026, driven by strong sales of its Hard Disk Drives (HDD), which are expected to sustain a 25% annual growth in HDD exabytes [3] Group 2 - Morgan Stanley has also raised its price target for Seagate to $337, recommending an overweight position on cloud capital expenditure winners and companies with unique assets, while being underweight on firms with increased memory exposure due to rising costs [4] - Seagate Technology provides data storage technology and infrastructure solutions across multiple regions, including Singapore, the US, and the Netherlands [5]

Core Viewpoint - The S&P 500 index experienced an annual increase of 16.65% to 17% by the end of 2025, with significant gains in data storage and semiconductor sectors driven by AI investment trends [1][9]. Group 1: Top Gainers in S&P 500 - SanDisk (SNDK) achieved a remarkable annual increase of 559%, although it was not officially counted in the best stocks due to its late inclusion in the index [1][21]. - Western Digital (WDC) saw a stock price surge of 268%, benefiting from strong demand for high-capacity storage solutions driven by AI data centers [11][15]. - Micron Technology (MU) recorded a 227% increase, capitalizing on the AI data wave and exceeding market expectations in its financial performance [18]. - Seagate Technology (STX) experienced a rise of 219%, with its high-margin hard disk products in demand due to AI's impact on data storage needs [15]. - Robinhood Markets (HOOD) had a gain of 186% to 226%, operating in the financial services and online trading platform sector [5]. Group 2: Top Losers in S&P 500 - The Trade Desk (TTD) faced a significant decline of 67% to 70.1%, becoming the worst-performing stock in the S&P 500 due to economic uncertainties and high competition in the digital advertising sector [10][27]. - Fiserv (FISV) dropped by 67%, reflecting challenges in the fintech and payment industry [10][27]. - Deckers Outdoor (DECK) saw a decline of 49% to 56.7%, impacted by weak performance forecasts and analyst downgrades [10][27]. - Alexandria Real Estate (ARE) experienced a drop of 45% to 49%, affected by pressures in the real estate investment trust sector [10][27]. Group 3: Market Observations - The market winners in 2025 were concentrated in data storage and semiconductor sectors, benefiting from the AI-driven demand for data center infrastructure [9][10]. - Conversely, the losers were spread across digital advertising, consumer goods, real estate, and healthcare sectors, facing pressures from high interest rates and slowing consumer spending [9][10]. - The AI investment theme has shifted from technology breakthroughs to infrastructure development, indicating potential future investment opportunities in data storage and related sectors [23].

Market Performance - The US stock market continued its post-Christmas pullback, with all three major indices closing lower, marking a subdued end to 2025. The S&P 500 index fell by 0.74% to 6845.5 points, the Nasdaq Composite dropped by 0.76% to 23241.99 points, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased by 0.63% to 48063.29 points [1]. - For the year, the S&P 500 recorded an annual increase of 16.39%, while the Nasdaq managed a 20.36% rise, achieving over 20% growth for three consecutive years. The Dow Jones also rose by 12.97%, marking a similar performance for the third year in a row [3]. Individual Stock Performance - Among the top performers in the S&P 500, four storage giants—SanDisk, Western Digital, Micron Technology, and Seagate Technology—led the annual gains. Semiconductor stocks like Lam Research, AI application leader Palantir, and Comfort Systems, which provides HVAC solutions for data centers, also featured prominently [3]. - In the tech sector, only Google and Nvidia among the "Big Seven" tech companies outperformed the benchmark index in 2025 [8]. Commodity and Sector Movements - US silver futures experienced a significant drop of 9% due to a second margin increase by the CME Group within a week, negatively impacting the mining sector. Companies like Endeavour Silver and Silvercorp Metals saw declines of over 4% and 2.8%, respectively [11]. Chinese Stocks - The Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index closed down 1.13% but recorded an annual increase of 11.33%. Notable Chinese stocks included Alibaba, which rose over 75%, and Netease, which increased by 58.28% [12]. Corporate News - Warren Buffett officially retired as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway on December 31, 2025, after a long tenure, although he will remain as chairman of the board [13]. - Tesla achieved a milestone with a driver completing a coast-to-coast journey using full self-driving technology, marking a significant advancement in autonomous vehicle capabilities [15]. - Nvidia and AMD are expected to enter a "year-long price increase cycle" for GPUs, driven by rising memory costs, with flagship models potentially reaching prices as high as $5000 [16]. - Trump Media & Technology Group announced plans to issue a new cryptocurrency to shareholders, despite a significant annual decline in stock value [17]. - Brookfield Asset Management is launching a cloud computing business to challenge tech giants like Amazon, aiming to reduce AI development costs [18]. - Uber is in talks to acquire the parking app SpotHero, which could create synergies between ride-hailing and parking services [19].

Core Viewpoint - The U.S. stock market is entering its third year of a bull market driven by the AI boom, with the S&P 500 index expected to end 2025 with a gain of over 17% [1] Winners - Technology stocks, particularly those related to AI, are leading the U.S. stock market this year, with storage companies like SanDisk, Western Digital, Micron Technology, and Seagate Technology showing significant gains of 585%, 292%, 249%, and 231% respectively [2] - The demand for storage capacity and bandwidth from AI servers far exceeds that of traditional servers, leading to a price surge in the storage industry as production shifts towards high-end storage products [2] - Palantir has seen a year-to-date increase of 139%, likely achieving a three-digit percentage gain for the third consecutive year, although it is considered expensive with a forward P/E ratio exceeding 180 [6] - Warner Bros. Discovery's stock has surged nearly 174% this year due to acquisition news, with ongoing bidding from Netflix and Paramount Global for the company [8] - Several stocks, including Robinhood, SanDisk, AppLovin, and Carvana, have been added to the S&P 500 index in 2025, all achieving triple-digit percentage gains [12] Losers - Economic uncertainty and tariffs have negatively impacted consumer stocks, particularly essential consumer goods companies like Clorox, Lamb Weston, Campbell Soup, and Constellation Brands, which are among the worst performers in the S&P 500 [15] - Deckers Outdoor, known for brands like Hoka and Ugg, has seen a nearly 50% decline in 2025, ending a nine-year growth streak due to weak earnings forecasts and analyst downgrades [15] - Health insurance stocks have also performed poorly, with Molina Healthcare's stock down over 40% and both UnitedHealth and Centene seeing declines exceeding 30% [15] - Despite the poor performance, some investors see potential for a rebound in health insurance stocks due to attractive valuations, with Michael Burry expressing bullish sentiment on Molina Healthcare [18]