On Thursday, Asian markets were downcast amid a sell-off in U.S. tech stocks, with semiconductor shares in Japan and South Korea falling accordingly. The decline followed reports that Apple was in talks to acquire a Chinese chipmaker, sparking market concerns over intensifying competition.
South Korea’s SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics shares fell about 5%, making them the biggest drag on the MSCI Asia-Pacific Index. Japan’s Kioxia Holdings saw its stock plunge as much as 15%.
Investors are assessing the impact of soaring memory prices driven by surging demand for artificial intelligence, reigniting market concerns about the industry. At the end of last month, Apple raised prices on all Mac computers, iPads, smart home devices, and Vision Pro, heightening fears that rising costs could dampen demand.
Apple is seeking to source memory components from two Chinese manufacturers blacklisted by the Pentagon to help alleviate the global memory shortage, according to people familiar with the matter. Negotiations between Apple and the two companies are ongoing, and no final agreement has been reached, these individuals said. They requested anonymity because the discussions involve private matters.
“This reflects China’s technological catch-up,” said Takeshi Ogihara, executive strategist at Asset Management One Co. He noted that while earnings performance of storage chip stocks like Kioxia has provided support, the real question is “whether this explosive earnings growth we’re seeing can continue indefinitely.” “That remains highly uncertain.”
Technical Analysis:
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Gold: After breaking above the blue zone indicated by our plugin yesterday, prices surged by over $120. The buy stop signal we provided aligned perfectly with the price movement. For today, we will continue to maintain our strategy of buying on pullbacks following blue-zone momentum breakouts. However, considering tonight’s non-farm payroll data and Friday’s U.S. market holiday, we are keeping a yellow zone in place to monitor potential liquidity sweeps. For detailed positions, please consult the plugin.
(Gold 15-minute chart)
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Nasdaq: After dipping near 29,700 overnight, the index began to rebound, with resistance consistently around 30,000. Over the past two trading days, prices have consolidated along a downward trend. Only if the index can break above and hold firmly in the 30,000–31,000 range during the day should we consider buying on pullbacks. For detailed levels, please consult the plugin.
(NASDAQ 15-minute chart)
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Crude oil: Today, we continue to monitor the sell signal following a pullback after liquidity sweeps higher. For detailed levels, please consult the plugin.
(Crude Oil 15-minute Chart)
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Today’s key financial data and events to watch:
20:30 U.S. June non-farm payroll and unemployment rate
