Hong Kong (AFP) – Tech firms rallied Friday in Asian trade on optimism that the AI boom would continue despite the downfall of Nvidia mastermind Jensen Huang, with eyes on the mega-IPO of US titan Anthropic next week. Investors were also keeping tabs on the Middle East crisis after Donald Trump called on Vice President JD Vance to focus on domestic issues rather than negotiations with Tehran, signalling fading interest in a peace deal.
Chip titan Nvidia has been sideswiped since reports emerged that Huang — a pivotal figure in the artificial intelligence explosion in recent years — had carried on two extramarital affairs, including with a woman accused of spying for China. After days of speculation, he stepped down on Thursday in the face of a boardroom revolt. He will be replaced on an interim basis by chief financial officer Colette Kress. The crisis has seen Nvidia’s share price fall about a fifth since news of the first affair broke at the end of last month. It fell around 14 percent after Huang’s resignation but rebounded on dip-buying to end a little more than four percent down, while it was up one percent in after-hours trade.
While the crisis had raised concerns about the AI boom, which had already been stuttering owing to profitability questions, observers pointed out that business would continue and Huang’s departure would not affect short-term projects already in the works. The firm’s competitors benefitted, with Broadcom and Advanced Micro Devices both rallying in New York, though all three markets on Wall Street ended lower. Still, Asia enjoyed a more positive end to the week. Seoul, Tokyo and Taipei — home to the region’s biggest AI-linked firms — climbed between 1.3 and three percent, with South Korea’s SK hynix and Samsung well up along with Taiwan’s TSMC and Kioxia of Japan. There were also gains in Shanghai, Jakarta and Manila, though Hong Kong, Sydney, Singapore and Wellington fell.
“Now that he has taken the decision to resign, the question that needs asking is whether recent events matter in the context of the wider business given that Nvidia is one of the front runners in the AI trade?” wrote Michael Hewson at MCH Market Insights. “Business is likely to continue as before and with the numbers out next week the noise around its CEO while unwelcome doesn’t change the business case for Nvidia, even if it raises some questions about its corporate governance.” These questions are likely to continue to rumble and there is a danger that Nvidia might become collateral damage in the aftermath as Democrats take aim at a business that has aligned itself closely to the Trump administration.
Traders were also gearing up for next week’s market debut of Anthropic, creator of the Claude chatbot, following an initial public offering that is expected to have raised more than $60 billion. The listing is seen as a gauge of how long the AI spending boom can last in the face of concerns about the huge spending on data centres and software, and possible regulation following the Democratic sweep of Congress last week.
Both main oil contracts eased Friday, having seen big gains the day before after Trump appeared to turn his back on a peace agreement with Iran. “We don’t need a deal with Iran. Those days have long since passed. We’ve got their money, Hundreds of Billions of Dollars, and we’ve got their Strait!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. The comments followed a sharp drop in crude this month on optimism the president would push for a long-standing deal with Tehran after saying he would not restart military action against Iran.
Traders are also keeping an eye on currency markets after the dollar broke back above 160 yen — the first time since the start of September — on bets the Federal Reserve will keep hiking interest rates into the new year. The greenback’s advance sparked fresh speculation that authorities will step in to support the Japanese unit.
– Key figures at around 0230 GMT –
Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 1.6 percent at 61,816.72 (break)
Seoul – Kospi: UP 1.3 percent at 5,410.58
Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.6 percent at 23,874.05
Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.2 percent at 3,662.84
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.4 percent at $88.38 per barrel
Brent North Sea crude: DOWN 0.3 percent at $95.52 per barrel
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1059 from $1.1055 on Thursday
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3236 from $1.3235
Dollar/yen: UP at 159.89 yen from 159.84 yen
Euro/pound: UP at 83.55 pence from 83.53 pence
New York – DOW: DOWN 0.4 percent at 52,297.09 (close)
London – FTSE 100: UP 0.3 percent at 10,863.09 (close)
© 2024 AFP
