SK Hynix Inc. reported a five-fold jump in quarterly profit, underscoring the surging prices of the memory chips that underpin the boom in global artificial intelligence development. Operating profit for the March quarter jumped to 37.61 trillion won ($25.4 billion), a record high that compares with the average estimate by analysts for 35.7 trillion won. Sales nearly tripled to 52.58 trillion won....
SK Hynix Inc. reported a five-fold jump in quarterly profit, underscoring the surging prices of the memory chips that underpin the boom in global artificial intelligence development. Operating profit for the March quarter jumped to 37.61 trillion won ($25.4 billion), a record high that compares with the average estimate by analysts for 35.7 trillion won. Sales nearly tripled to 52.58 trillion won. Favorable memory prices will continue on robust demand and SK Hynix’s capital spending would increase significantly this year, it said. The chipmaker is riding an AI spending boom that’s reshaping the memory sector and offsetting fears around supply chain disruptions stemming from war in the Middle East. The outperformance may fuel the stance of bullish investors, who argue that the advent of AI is igniting a super-cycle of demand that will help SK Hynix and its rivals break a decades-old cycle of boom and bust. Read More: Memory Stock Valuations Spark Debate Over ‘Supercycle’ Potential Hyperscalers from Meta Platforms Inc. to Amazon.com Inc. are spending hundreds of billions of dollars on AI hardware. That’s fueling earnings at SK Hynix, which is benefiting from its lead in high-bandwidth memory, critical for training and running AI models alongside Nvidia Corp. accelerators. SK Hynix and its competitors Samsung Electronics Co. and Micron Technology Inc. are also allocating more production capacity to lucrative HBM, spurring shortages and price spikes in conventional memory. That’s further boosting revenue for memory makers. In response to the demand, Hynix said in January that its capital expenditure in 2026 will rise significantly from 30.2 trillion won in 2025. Last month, it announced a plan to spend the equivalent of $8 billion on cutting-edge extreme ultraviolet lithography chipmaking tools from ASML Holding NV . Larger rival Samsung plans to spend more than 110 trillion won on chip capacity expansion and research this year, devoting a record amount of capital towar...
Strong corporate earnings, and the Trump administration’s indefinite ceasefire in the US-Israel war with Iran, were enough for Wall Street to continue its march to record highs Wednesday . The continuing disconnect with other economic currents—such as the affordability issues facing American households, sinking consumer confidence and an increasingly difficult job market —could be tied to investor...
Strong corporate earnings, and the Trump administration’s indefinite ceasefire in the US-Israel war with Iran, were enough for Wall Street to continue its march to record highs Wednesday . The continuing disconnect with other economic currents—such as the affordability issues facing American households, sinking consumer confidence and an increasingly difficult job market —could be tied to investor interest in something else entirely: profit . Strong company profits as well as the revival of the artificial-intelligence trade have buoyed stocks despite the above, or the continuing geopolitical risks associated with the conflict in the Middle East . Almost 80% of the S&P 500 companies reporting first-quarter results have beaten analyst earnings estimates so far, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. “While the Iran conflict is ongoing, my sense is that investors are already starting to look through it and focus on what really matters,” said Kenny Polcari at SlateStone Wealth. “We’ve seen this movie before—the headlines hit, the market reacts, then it settles down and refocuses on fundamentals.” — David E. Rovella What You Need to Know Today Oil prices rose for a third straight session with Brent crude climbing above $101 a barrel as the standoff between Iran and the US around the Strait of Hormuz settles in. The physical markets continue to signal a shortage of near-term supplies with Dated Brent, the world’s most important real-world crude price, rising above $107 a barrel. US gasoline prices, in turn, have risen to the highest level in almost four years , putting pressure on President Donald Trump to exit the conflict. And with no sign the strait will be reopened to oil and liquefied natural gas shipments soon, experts warn of the increasing likelihood of supply shortages and a global inflation crisis. Can the US and Iran Agree to a Lasting Deal to End the War? Read more Andreessen Horowitz and Thrive Capital are poised for a multibillion-dollar windfall from thei...
Good morning, it’s Angus in Sydney. While the US and Iran remain locked in a battle for control of the Strait of Hormuz , at home, property billionaire Greg Goodman has warned of a data center selloff in the sector following a debt frenzy. There’s a new battle to rein in soaring costs inside Australia’s flagship disability welfare program. And rising costs are forcing Santos to streamline its oil ...
Good morning, it’s Angus in Sydney. While the US and Iran remain locked in a battle for control of the Strait of Hormuz , at home, property billionaire Greg Goodman has warned of a data center selloff in the sector following a debt frenzy. There’s a new battle to rein in soaring costs inside Australia’s flagship disability welfare program. And rising costs are forcing Santos to streamline its oil and gas business. — Angus Whitley, Global Business reporter What’s happening now A global wave of mergers and acquisitions is looming among private equity-backed data-center companies as their debt burdens become unmanageable, Greg Goodman, chief executive officer of Australian industrial property giant Goodman Group, said in an interview . Santos is restructuring the company’s oil and gas business in order to cut costs, according to an internal notice seen by Bloomberg, after a string of stymied takeover bids that have raised pressure to increase shareholder returns. The Australian and Papua New Guinean assets will report to four regional business units, instead of having individual management teams. Australia’s government is moving to rein in the ballooning costs of its signature disability welfare program as it tries to frame next month’s budget against the backdrop of a global energy crisis. Health Minister Mark Butler will introduce legislation to tighten eligibility, curb fraud and boost oversight of providers in the National Disability Insurance Scheme. Australia and New Zealand’s central banks are monitoring developments around Anthropic PBC’s new Mythos AI model , which the company says is powerful enough to enable sophisticated cyberattacks. Bloomberg reported earlier that a small group of unauthorized users gained access to Mythos on the same day Anthropic announced plans to release the model to a limited number of companies for testing. Toronto Stock Exchange owner TMX Group agreed to buy Cboe Global Markets Inc.’s Australian and Canadian units. The Canadian com...
Hong Kong authorities are doubling down on safeguards and guidance on fronts ranging from state security to national education, and understandably so. The revised school curriculum guide seeking to make children as young as six “feel proud to be Chinese” and gain a basic understanding of national affairs might be perceived as another aggressive step in this regard, but it is part of a broader driv...
Hong Kong authorities are doubling down on safeguards and guidance on fronts ranging from state security to national education, and understandably so. The revised school curriculum guide seeking to make children as young as six “feel proud to be Chinese” and gain a basic understanding of national affairs might be perceived as another aggressive step in this regard, but it is part of a broader drive to close the gaps stemming from inadequacies over the decades. Compared with the 2021 version, the...
storkalex/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Berkshire Hathaway Inc. ( BRK.A , BRK.B ) has had a rough start to 2026. Not only did it fail to outperform during the Iran conflict selloff like it did during the tariff fiasco in April 2025, but it's failed to participate in the recovery as well. It has underperformed the index by 8% since my last article , in which I argued that it was still fully val...
storkalex/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Berkshire Hathaway Inc. ( BRK.A , BRK.B ) has had a rough start to 2026. Not only did it fail to outperform during the Iran conflict selloff like it did during the tariff fiasco in April 2025, but it's failed to participate in the recovery as well. It has underperformed the index by 8% since my last article , in which I argued that it was still fully valued. The level of underperformance is a bit surprising considering Berkshire's announcement that it is repurchasing shares . Data by YCharts I sold my entire stake in early 2024 because of disappointment with Berkshire's acquisitions , which look even worse since I wrote the article two years ago. Since 2023, Berkshire has dumped $16.5 billion into Pilot ($10.8 billion for the remaining shares, plus another $5.7 billion to pay off their high-yield debt) for it to earn $190 million last year. Since my sale, it's underperformed the index by 25% and is now back to a more reasonable valuation compared to this time last year, especially considering the treasury rate is down to the mid-3s and probably will head lower this year. Is it a Buy yet? What's a Reasonable Expectation of Future Returns for Berkshire From Here? Whether this is a Buy hinges on what sort of return we can expect from Berkshire going forward. I recently was in a discussion on Twitter/X where one person claimed Berkshire should return 10-13%/year from here (he gave no methodology for the numbers.) Another user, a smart investor, said 10%/year is reasonable. I don't think these are reasonable numbers, and 6-7% would actually represent good performance. My estimate for Berkshire's 2026 earnings is to be flat with 2025, with some business growth offsetting headwinds in interest income and underwriting results. OxyChem should provide a bit of a boost. I think flat would be a very good result for Berkshire this year. FY2025 results, I believe, are a good steady state without a lot of noise. BHE only had wildfire cha...
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) is one of the top S&P 500 stocks by index weight. On April 15, JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group inched closer to completing a record $38 billion loan package to finance Oracle’s data center projects. The two took up the record-breaking loan package in August […]
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) is one of the top S&P 500 stocks by index weight. On April 15, JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group inched closer to completing a record $38 billion loan package to finance Oracle’s data center projects. The two took up the record-breaking loan package in August […]
The picture emerging from the Q1 earnings season is of continued strength and momentum, with companies not only comfortably beating consensus estimates but also providing a reassuring read on the economy despite elevated energy costs and other risks.
The picture emerging from the Q1 earnings season is of continued strength and momentum, with companies not only comfortably beating consensus estimates but also providing a reassuring read on the economy despite elevated energy costs and other risks.
Gold steadied as the US extension of a ceasefire with Iran left global markets grappling with the blockage of the Strait of Hormuz, impacting energy security and keeping inflation risks high. Bullion was near $4,735 an ounce in early trading after adding 0.4% in the previous session, stemming a two-day decline. President Donald Trump said the truce agreed April 7 would stay in place indefinitely w...
Gold steadied as the US extension of a ceasefire with Iran left global markets grappling with the blockage of the Strait of Hormuz, impacting energy security and keeping inflation risks high. Bullion was near $4,735 an ounce in early trading after adding 0.4% in the previous session, stemming a two-day decline. President Donald Trump said the truce agreed April 7 would stay in place indefinitely while Washington waits for Iran to submit a new peace proposal, though Tehran says it has no plans to take part in negotiations imminently. Trump’s ceasefire extension represents a retreat from threats to resume the bombing of Iran in the event a deal couldn’t be reached by a Wednesday deadline. Meanwhile, the two sides are locked in a battle to control the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway for energy, to gain leverage in possible truce talks. Read More: US Says No Firm Deadline for Iran Proposal Amid Hormuz Standoff Broader market sentiment has improved, supporting gold that was hit by a liquidity squeeze in the early days of the war, when investors offloaded bullion holdings to cover losses elsewhere. The S&P 500 rose 1% on Wednesday, extending a rally for April that is already set to be the best for any month since 2020. Spot gold was 0.1% lower at $4,734.32 an ounce as of 6:34 a.m. Singapore time. Silver fell 0.1% to $77.64 an ounce, while platinum and palladium also dipped. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index , a gauge of the US currency, was marginally lower.
STORY: U.S. stocks ended higher on Wednesday, with the Dow adding about seven-tenths of a percent, the S&P 500 rising 1% and the Nasdaq climbing more than 1.6%. The gains pushed the S&P 500 and Nasdaq to record closing highs. Investor optimism was fueled by President Donald Trump's extended ceasefire with Iran, along with a round of solid corporate earnings. Shares of Tesla climbed about 4.5% in e...
STORY: U.S. stocks ended higher on Wednesday, with the Dow adding about seven-tenths of a percent, the S&P 500 rising 1% and the Nasdaq climbing more than 1.6%. The gains pushed the S&P 500 and Nasdaq to record closing highs. Investor optimism was fueled by President Donald Trump's extended ceasefire with Iran, along with a round of solid corporate earnings. Shares of Tesla climbed about 4.5% in extended trading after the EV maker reported a surprise positive free cash flow in the first quarter. Tech in general had a strong session, led by gains in chip stocks such as Micron Technology, which surged 8.5% to close at a record high. That helped the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index hit an intraday record for an 11th straight session and notch its 16th straight day of gains - its longest streak ever. Mike Mussio is president of FBB Capital Partners. "Big tech earnings are gonna be next week, but we're starting to see some of the things within that AI complex start to announce. All signs are pretty much full speed ahead as far as we know in terms of the AI capital spend, and that's pulling stocks in general and the Nasdaq, the tech-heavy Nasdaq up as well. And some of these chip companies that hadn't moved much - Nvidia being the most obvious - over the course of six months or so, from September to March, have all of a sudden started moving in a pretty big way in the last four weeks." :: ServiceNow On the downside, however, shares of ServiceNow plummeted 13% in extended trading after the software company said its first-quarter subscription revenue growth was impacted by the delayed closure of several large deals due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Elsewhere in the market, shares of Lululemon Athletica, down 2% at the close, tumbled another 5% in extended trading after the company picked former top Nike executive Heidi O'Neill as its next chief executive. The move comes as the retailer faces pressure from its founder and a large activist investor to revive its...
The admission could open Tesla to legal challenges after it spent years promising customers they were just one software update away from owning fully autonomous cars.
The admission could open Tesla to legal challenges after it spent years promising customers they were just one software update away from owning fully autonomous cars.
The admission could open Tesla to legal challenges after it spent years promising customers they were just one software update away from owning fully autonomous cars.
The admission could open Tesla to legal challenges after it spent years promising customers they were just one software update away from owning fully autonomous cars.