ASML’s largest customers are TSMC and Samsung Electronics and both report they are struggling to keep pace with relentless demand for advanced semiconductor chips.
ASML’s largest customers are TSMC and Samsung Electronics and both report they are struggling to keep pace with relentless demand for advanced semiconductor chips.
DarthArt/iStock Editorial via Getty Images BYD's ( BYDDF ) FY25 results missed expectations slightly due to strong sales headwinds in 2H25. Revenue reached CNY803 billion vs. 777 billion in the previous year. The rise of "anti-involution" was a growth headwind and a reason for my previous downgrade , noting the price advantage of BYD relative to peers. A natural strategy for it to pursue was under...
DarthArt/iStock Editorial via Getty Images BYD's ( BYDDF ) FY25 results missed expectations slightly due to strong sales headwinds in 2H25. Revenue reached CNY803 billion vs. 777 billion in the previous year. The rise of "anti-involution" was a growth headwind and a reason for my previous downgrade , noting the price advantage of BYD relative to peers. A natural strategy for it to pursue was undercutting competitors, which it could have done with years of consolidating its vertical integration "moat". That said, such practices were widely frowned upon within the agenda. As a result, sales have taken a drastic hit. It would be misleading to purely blame the sluggish performance on policy headwinds. Late 2024 to 2025 was a robust year for new product rollouts by peers in both the premium and low-cost segments. A strong contrast would be Geely, which has shown tremendous growth or resilience across all of its product lines. In addition, most of its peers have impressed with new product releases that threatened BYD's product lines, such as Song, Qin, Han, and Yangwang. Each of the line's declines is nuanced but fixable. With several product updates in 2026, I think they would likely put the company in a better position than it's been in since 2H25. More About Its Fundamentals Costs Overall, BYD does pride itself on being one of the most vertically integrated automakers in the world. In 2025, its cars have an average selling price (ASP) of CNY140 and a gross margin of 17.7%. This does not seem impressive considering a peer like Geely with ASP and gross margin at CNY114k and 16.6% ( see my recent piece on Geely ). These numbers are a bit nuanced, however. Firstly, BYD's revenue is consolidated with about 80% from automobile manufacturing and the rest coming from activities like electronics under its publicly traded subsidiary, BYD Electronic ( BYDIF ). In FY25, BYD Electronic only had a gross margin of 6% . In addition, one should account for the cost pressure of vertical...
US President Donald Trump indicated he may be preparing to wind down the war with Iran, boosting market optimism and restoring some stability to global energy prices. Peace talks with the Islamic Republic might restart “over the next two days,” the New York Post cited the president as saying. In a separate interview with ABC News, he said extending a two-week ceasefire that was clinched last week ...
US President Donald Trump indicated he may be preparing to wind down the war with Iran, boosting market optimism and restoring some stability to global energy prices. Peace talks with the Islamic Republic might restart “over the next two days,” the New York Post cited the president as saying. In a separate interview with ABC News, he said extending a two-week ceasefire that was clinched last week after nearly six weeks of fighting may not be necessary, hinting at significant near-term progress without elaborating. The Opening Trade has everything you need to know as markets open across Europe. With analysis you won't find anywhere else, we break down the biggest stories of the day and speak to top guests who have skin in the game. Hosted by Anna Edwards and Guy Johnson. (Source: Bloomberg)
Events such as Art Basel Hong Kong and ComplexCon helped drive a 14 per cent year-on-year growth in visitor arrivals in March, but the US-Israel war with Iran could bring volatility to the travel market, the Tourism Board has said. The increase contributed to a 17 per cent year-on-year rise in visitor numbers in the first quarter of the year, hitting a total of 14.31 million. “In the coming months...
Events such as Art Basel Hong Kong and ComplexCon helped drive a 14 per cent year-on-year growth in visitor arrivals in March, but the US-Israel war with Iran could bring volatility to the travel market, the Tourism Board has said. The increase contributed to a 17 per cent year-on-year rise in visitor numbers in the first quarter of the year, hitting a total of 14.31 million. “In the coming months, developments in the Middle East may lead to volatility in the tourism market. We will closely...
Rice prices surged the most in more than two years on concerns about the supply outlook after the cost of fuel and fertilizer jumped due to the Iran war, prompting some Thai farmers to leave their crop in the ground. Thai white rice 5% broken, an Asian benchmark, jumped 10% to $423 a ton in the week ended April 8, the biggest gain since August 2023. While it’s an early sign that rising input costs...
Rice prices surged the most in more than two years on concerns about the supply outlook after the cost of fuel and fertilizer jumped due to the Iran war, prompting some Thai farmers to leave their crop in the ground. Thai white rice 5% broken, an Asian benchmark, jumped 10% to $423 a ton in the week ended April 8, the biggest gain since August 2023. While it’s an early sign that rising input costs are starting to impact the market, prices have been on a prolonged downtrend and were recently near the lowest in over a decade. Some farmers in Thailand have suspended rice cultivation because their profits simply aren’t enough to cover the ballooning costs, said Oscar Tjakra , a senior commodities analyst at Rabobank in Singapore. The challenging situation has been compounded by a long dry season, which has significantly reduced yields and tightened supplies of the current crop, he added. Tjakra said a stronger baht and higher freight and insurance costs due to the war in the Middle East contributed to the jump in rice prices. Read more: Fuel Shortages From Iran War Threaten Asia’s Biggest Food Staple Thailand is the third-largest exporter globally, according to data from the US Department of Agriculture. Farmers in the country, along with others in the region, are currently collecting their off-season crop and getting ready for planting of the main crop that starts as early as May. President Donald Trump has indicated he may be preparing to wind down the war with Iran, offering some relief to broader markets, but it will take some time for energy flows to return to normal through the Strait of Hormuz. That may mean input costs remain elevated for longer, denting rice output.
South Korea has secured hundreds of millions of barrels of crude oil plus fresh naphtha supplies from Kazakhstan, Oman, and Saudi Arabia, to be delivered by routes avoiding the blockaded Strait of Hormuz, the president’s chief of staff said. Some 273 million barrels of crude oil and up to 2.1 million tons of naphtha from Kazakhstan, Oman, and Saudi Arabia, will be delivered by the end of 2026 via ...
South Korea has secured hundreds of millions of barrels of crude oil plus fresh naphtha supplies from Kazakhstan, Oman, and Saudi Arabia, to be delivered by routes avoiding the blockaded Strait of Hormuz, the president’s chief of staff said. Some 273 million barrels of crude oil and up to 2.1 million tons of naphtha from Kazakhstan, Oman, and Saudi Arabia, will be delivered by the end of 2026 via other routes, Kang Hoon-sik said. The secured supplies include 18 million barrels of crude oil from Kazakhstan and 5 million barrels of crude oil along with 1.6 million tons of naphtha from Oman, Kang said at a briefing Wednesday. Saudi Arabia will provide 50 million barrels of oil — to be shipped in April-May — plus an additional 200 million barrels from June through the end of the year. Saudi also committed to providing 500,000 tons of naphtha. The announcement comes as South Korea scrambles to diversify its energy sources and secure stable imports of key petrochemical materials after the crisis in the Middle East highlighted its overreliance on supplies via the Strait of Hormuz. South Korean imports the nearly all of its energy needs, including some 70 percent via the strait. The prolonged Iran conflict has hit the energy-importing nation hard, straining households and businesses. On Wednesday, South Korea’s import prices posted their biggest surge in nearly three decades, underscoring the scale of cost pressures rippling through the economy as the war spurs a spike in oil and weighs on the won. Read More: S. Korea Import Prices Post Biggest Jump Since 1998 on Iran War Since the conflict in the Middle East began in February, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has repeatedly urged citizens to exercise restraint in fuel use, signaling a growing sense of urgency as the government moves to contain the economic fallout from surging energy prices and prolonged supply disruptions. Lee has characterized the supply crunch as one of the most severe energy security threats for So...
NicoElNino The artificial intelligence spending spree that has defined Big Tech’s strategy is entering a critical new phase, with investors increasingly demanding proof that massive capital outlays will translate into meaningful returns. On a recent episode of the Investing Experts podcast, two of Seeking Alpha's top tech analysts, Amrita Roy and Uttam Dey, say 2026 marks a pivotal year when hyper...
NicoElNino The artificial intelligence spending spree that has defined Big Tech’s strategy is entering a critical new phase, with investors increasingly demanding proof that massive capital outlays will translate into meaningful returns. On a recent episode of the Investing Experts podcast, two of Seeking Alpha's top tech analysts, Amrita Roy and Uttam Dey, say 2026 marks a pivotal year when hyperscalers must demonstrate their AI investments are paying off -- or face sustained pressure on their stocks. ( Listen to the podcast or read the transcript ) The four major hyperscalers -- Amazon ( AMZN ), Meta ( META ), Google ( GOOGL ) ( GOOG ), and Microsoft ( MSFT )-- have committed to spend approximately $680B in capital expenditures this year, nearly double 2025 levels and far exceeding expectations. The money is flowing into data centers, GPU procurement, custom silicon development, and power contracts. But a fundamental shift is underway in how this spending is financed, according to Roy. “Up until now, most of this capex was actually being driven by these hyperscalers using their own operating cash flows,” Roy explained. “But since revenue is not necessarily catching up yet at the speed, these companies are now going to have to increasingly tap into the debt markets to fund their capex.” This transition from internally funded expansion to debt -- financed growth is intensifying scrutiny on when—and whether -- AI investments will generate meaningful revenue acceleration. Microsoft has felt the pressure acutely, with shares declining more than 30% from all-time highs at one point as investors grapple with the prospect of negative free cash flow. The heavyweight’s struggles reflect broader uncertainty about the timeline for AI monetization across the sector. “ROI on AI CapEx is one of the big themes that is going to be on investors’ mind in 2026, and as well as in the coming years,” Roy said. “The companies that can actually demonstrate the quicker or the faster conver...
General Secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and Chinese President Xi Jinping meets his Vietnamese counterpart To Lam in Beijing on Wednesday. Photo: Xinhua Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Vietnam’s top leader, To Lam, pledged to deepen strategic and economic ties while defending their Communist political systems during a high-level summit in Beijing. Xi held talks with To Lam...
General Secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and Chinese President Xi Jinping meets his Vietnamese counterpart To Lam in Beijing on Wednesday. Photo: Xinhua Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Vietnam’s top leader, To Lam, pledged to deepen strategic and economic ties while defending their Communist political systems during a high-level summit in Beijing. Xi held talks with To Lam, who serves as general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam and state president, at the Great Hall of the People on the morning of April 15.
Women's sports are going through a golden era of rapid growth in the U.S., with rising fan interest in women's professional basketball, women's soccer, and more. Most investors might expect that bigger audiences for women's sports will be good news for athletic apparel stocks like Nike (NYSE: NKE) . After all, Nike signed WNBA star Caitlin Clark to a record-breaking signature shoe deal in April 20...
Women's sports are going through a golden era of rapid growth in the U.S., with rising fan interest in women's professional basketball, women's soccer, and more. Most investors might expect that bigger audiences for women's sports will be good news for athletic apparel stocks like Nike (NYSE: NKE) . After all, Nike signed WNBA star Caitlin Clark to a record-breaking signature shoe deal in April 2024. But although the rise of women's sports is great news for sports fans, it might not be good news for NKE shareholders. The company's stock has lost more than 50% of its value in the past two years since Caitlin Clark's shoe deal was announced. It's not Clark's fault -- NKE shares are down 68% in the past five years. Let's look at a few big reasons why rapid growth in women's sports won't be enough to come to the rescue for Nike investors. Continue reading
Pope Leo XIV is heading to the central African nation of Cameroon with a message of peace for its separatist region and for talks with President Paul Biya. (Image credit: Andrew Medichini)
Pope Leo XIV is heading to the central African nation of Cameroon with a message of peace for its separatist region and for talks with President Paul Biya. (Image credit: Andrew Medichini)
Michael Vi/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Chip equipment maker ASML ( ASML ) raised its full-year sales forecast, driven by AI infrastructure investments fueling semiconductor production that has boosted demand for its chipmaking machines. Shares of ASML rose about 0.3% premarket on Wednesday. Key Metrics ASML — which makes extreme ultraviolet lithography, or EUV, and Deep Ultraviolet, or DUV, ...
Michael Vi/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Chip equipment maker ASML ( ASML ) raised its full-year sales forecast, driven by AI infrastructure investments fueling semiconductor production that has boosted demand for its chipmaking machines. Shares of ASML rose about 0.3% premarket on Wednesday. Key Metrics ASML — which makes extreme ultraviolet lithography, or EUV, and Deep Ultraviolet, or DUV, lithography system — saw first-quarter net sales increase about 13.3% year-over-year to €8.77B, beating estimates. "The semiconductor industry's growth outlook continues to solidify, driven by ongoing AI-related infrastructure investments. Demand for chips is outpacing supply. In response, our customers are accelerating their capacity expansion plans for 2026 and beyond, supported by long-term agreements with their customers. In the past months, our customers have increased their expected short- and medium-term demand for our products. ASML's order intake continues to be very strong as a result, and we are closely aligned with our customers to support their demand in a combination of delivery of new systems and performance upgrades of their installed base," said ASML's CEO Christophe Fouquet. ASML noted last year that it would stop reporting order bookings after 2025, a key indicator of customer demand. The company said then that on an annual basis it will provide the total backlog. Addressing ASML's ability to keep up with demand, CFO Roger Dassen sai d the company should be able to ship at least 60 systems for Low NA EUV in 2026. Dassen added that the company can get to at least 80 Low NA EUV units in 2027. Fouquet noted that there is a lot of demand for advanced Memory and advanced Logic driven by investments in AI infrastructure. "We expect in fact that the supply will not meet the demand for theforeseeable future. So, this is creating a strong constraint in the end markets from AI to mobile andPC," said Fouquet. He added that "if we look at Memory, what our customers t...
Financial markets are unusually poised as investors wait to see what happens with a possible second round of talks between the US and Iran. Oil and major currencies were little changed along with S&P 500 futures, while Asian equity markets were broadly higher after overnight gains on Wall Street. The past weeks have seen markets pitch wildly as traders sought to discern the truth behind claims and...
Financial markets are unusually poised as investors wait to see what happens with a possible second round of talks between the US and Iran. Oil and major currencies were little changed along with S&P 500 futures, while Asian equity markets were broadly higher after overnight gains on Wall Street. The past weeks have seen markets pitch wildly as traders sought to discern the truth behind claims and counter claims, as well as calculate the impact of the continued suppression of oil exports from the Middle East. Right now, optimists outweigh pessimists, with stock benchmarks in the US and China recouping all their losses since the conflict began at the end of February. Although the outcome of any negotiations is unclear, and the effectiveness of the US blockade has yet to be evaluated, investors are betting that Donald Trump is keener to seek an end to the war than renew it. That means doomsday scenarios may be avoided, and potentially crude shipments could increase from their low levels. Peace talks with the Islamic Republic might restart “over the next two days,” the New York Post cited the president as saying. In a separate interview with ABC News, he said extending a two-week ceasefire that was clinched last week after nearly six weeks of fighting may not be necessary, hinting at significant near-term progress without elaborating. “I think you’re going to be watching an amazing two days ahead,” Trump told ABC. “I really do.” In a Fox Business interview, he said he sees the war as “close to over.” Considerable uncertainty remains, which is why markets appear to be at an equilibrium. Will the war headlines subside, allowing investors to return to betting on AI, or will further shocks undermine the new-found sense of calm? Keep track of the twists and turns — and the global fallout — of the war with Iran here . What You Need to Know Today Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged deeper coordination with Russia when he met with visiting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavr...