SK Hynix will buy back $28.6 billion worth of shares as part of a shareholder return plan https://t.co/GbTa8Woua8 ...

>> VERY GOOD WEDNESDAY MORNING. I AM CHAD THOMAS AND HERE ARE YOUR TOP STORIES. THE TEXT SELLOFF DEEPENS.CHIPMAKERS LEAVING AI STOCKS LOWER AS LONG AND BOND YIELDS HOLD AT MULTI-DECADE HIGHS FOR OIL CLIMBS FOR THE FOURTH STRAIGHT DAY AS PRESIDENT TRUMP HARDENS HIS STANCE ON IRAN, INSISTING NO TALKS ARE TAKING PLACE WITH IRAN. THE TWO SIDES HAVE REACHED A TENTATIVE DEAL. STICK A LOOK AT WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THE MARKETS THIS MORNING. ASIAN STOCKS DROP IN WITH THE SEMICONDUCTOR SELLOFF THIS MORNING.THE CLIMB BE ...

Market Trends & Macroeconomics - Global equity markets experienced negative closes, with the STOXX gauge dropping about 3% and Asian equities down 2%, while U.S. 10-year Treasury yields reached 4.69% and 30-year yields surged to levels not seen since 2007 [3][5] - Semiconductor stocks and tech sectors faced a severe sell-off globally, driven by rising bond yields, high debt-raising costs, and geopolitical uncertainty [7][15][17] - Crude oil prices (Brent) rose for a fourth consecutive day, holding above the 91 to 92 dollars per barrel level amid ongoing Middle East tensions and the de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz [1][4][46][48] Industry Dynamics & Geopolitics - China's first publicly traded humanoid robot maker, Unitree Robotics, saw its IPO shares surge up to 600% near the open after raising over 400 million, backed by a subscription rate of over 5,000 times [8][9] - The United Arab Emirates accused Iran of launching two ballistic missiles towards its territory, leading to the severance of trade and financial ties between the two nations [2][13][43] - President Donald Trump temporarily delayed planned 50% tariffs on billions of dollars of Canadian products for three days following a deal in principle [34][35] Financial Performance & Corporate Insights - Absa Group reported an 8% increase in headline earnings to 12.8 billion rand in the first half of the year, driven by strong growth in its South African business where headline earnings grew by 17% [67][71] - The European Union pledged to spend 30 billion euros to build seven AI factories, while Bloomberg Intelligence data estimates the EU will need a total investment of 3 trillion dollars by 2035—and up to 14 trillion dollars across broader sectors—to achieve technological self-sufficiency [79][84]

Market Trends & Macro Environment - Asian technology leading stocks experienced sharp declines, tracking overnight losses from US peers [1][2] - MSCI Asia overall dropped by about 2%, marking its worst day in 3 weeks [3] - KOSPI fell by about 5%, with tech-heavy indices in Japan and Taiwan following the declines [3] - Hong Kong shares showed relative resilience with the HS Tech index down slightly less than 1%, though internet stocks still experienced weakness [4] - US 10-year Treasury yields reached their highest level in about 19 months before stabilizing, while bond yields in Japan, Australia, and New Zealand fell back [7] - The Japanese yen strengthened slightly, moving away from the 1.60% level against the US dollar [7] Industry Dynamics & Investment Opportunities - The tech sell-off was driven by higher oil prices, an elevated yield environment, and rising borrowing costs impacting CapEx spending by US hyperscalers [2] - Baidu shares dropped by about 12% following disappointing earnings, concerns over massive CapEx spending, and a slowdown in AI growth [5] - Unitree Robotics completed its IPO in Shanghai, raising about 900 million US dollars, with shares jumping as much as 630% at the open [5] - Unitree Robotics became the first publicly traded humanoid robotics company in China, playing a significant role in the US-China AI race [6]

Market Trends and Macro Environment - Global equity markets experienced a selloff driven by rising bond yields, concerns over AI spending, and geopolitical deadlock between the U.S. and Iran[1][4][12] - China's 30-year bond yield approached an 11-month low, dropping toward 2.15%, reflecting weak domestic macro conditions and deflationary pressures[8][96] - U.S. and Canada reached a tentative deal in principle, with the U.S. pausing proposed 50% tariffs for a three-day period[130][163] Corporate Earnings and Financial Performance - Baidu reported a 4% decline in revenue, with core advertising sales dropping 19% due to intense competition from user-generated content and AI chatbots[19][20] - GigaDevice reported a first-half net profit increase of over 1,000% year-on-year, driven by capacity shortages and rising prices for niche memory products[114][119] - Pony AI generated $12 million in robotaxi revenue, marking massive growth year-on-year, while maintaining a healthy cash reserve of $1.39 billion[51][67] Industry Dynamics and Technology Sector - Unitree completed its Shanghai public debut following a $900 million IPO, becoming mainland China's first listed humanoid robot maker and surging over 400% in early trading[26][27][41][145] - ByteDance accumulated over $30 billion in orders and plans to spend a minimum of $70 billion to $100 billion this year on data center infrastructure and AI agent development[10][80][82] - Twelve Labs developed multimodal AI video search models capable of understanding spatial and temporal information directly from pixels, servicing media archives and physical AI agents[175][183]

SEE YOU TOMORROW. HASLINDA: CHINA'S HUMANOID ROMAN NOT REVOLUTION. INTO THE MARKET AS UNITREE IS FUELING BETS ON THE NEXT AI BREAKTHROUGH THAT WON'T JUST TALK WALK AS WELL.FROM SINGAPORE, THIS IS INSIGHT, WHERE WE DIVE DEEPER INTO STORIES THAT MATTER WITH CRUCIAL CONTEXT AND SHARP ANALYSIS. THE KOSPI TUMBLES AS SURGING YIELDS HAMMER AGING CHIP STOCKS. TREASURIES STUDY AFTER SWEEPING BOND SELLOFF.WE'LL PUSH IS HIGHER AS PRESIDENT TRUMP'S HARD LINE ON IRAN KEEPS HORMUZ TENSIONS FRONT AND CENTER. WITH NO BREAK ...

chip sellers keep AI-linked crypto under pressure. the Situational Awareness fund sometimes borrowed another $3 to $4 per dollar of capital, then lost 67% in July. after Citadel bought most of its public book at a discount exceeding 10%, chip stocks across Asia stayed weak. ...

Market Dynamics & Geopolitical Risks - Global stock markets experience a downturn driven by elevated bond yields, rising oil prices, and ongoing geopolitical tensions between the United States and Iran [1][5] - Crude oil prices advance for the fourth consecutive day, with New York crude trading around $85 a barrel and Brent near $91.30 a barrel, heightening concerns over secondary inflation [1][5][9] - The United States and Canada face mounting trade pressures as negotiations approach a midnight deadline regarding potential 50% tariffs and a 25% duty on U.S. automotive imports [4][19] AI Industry & Corporate Performance - Technology companies report mixed results, with Baidu experiencing a 12% stock drop after revenue fell for the fifth consecutive quarter amid intense competition and chatbot cannibalization, while Xiaomi's smartphone revenue declines by 7.5% due to record-high memory costs [1][2][23][25] - South Korean AI chip startup Rebellions secures over $160 million in direct equity investment from the national growth fund and prepares for a primary listing on the Kospi market [46][48] - Chinese robotics firm Unitree Robotics prepares for a Shanghai IPO following a retail portion subscribed over 5,000 times, with crypto futures indicating a 300% pop on its debut [34][35] Bond Markets & Monetary Policy - U.S. 30-year Treasury yields briefly top 5.3%, reaching their highest levels since 2007, driven by heavy government debt issuance and massive corporate debt financing for artificial intelligence infrastructure [3][5][9] - Japan reports strong economic data with core machine orders for June rising 16.9% year-on-year, significantly beating market expectations of 9.6% [8][10] - Bank Indonesia is widely expected to hold its benchmark interest rate steady at 5.75% during its upcoming monetary policy meeting led by the new governor [61]

The South Korean won strengthened past the key psychological level of 1,400 per dollar for the first time in more than 10 months, extending a recovery fueled by a booming semiconductor industry. https://t.co/mCOnBMHrr9 ...

Market Dynamics - China eases export limits on Nvidia H200 chips to accelerate domestic artificial intelligence development [1] Industry Investment and Procurement - ByteDance and Tencent each receive approximately 10,000 (ten thousand) advanced processors [1]