Apple leads surge in global tech shares after Trump tariff relief
Trump said the new tariff rate would apply to "all chips and semiconductors coming into the United States," but would not apply to companies that had made a commitment to manufacture in the U.S. or were in the process of doing so.
Apple's stock rose 3.3 per cent in premarket trading after Trump's announcement on Wednesday that the company will invest an additional $100 billion in the U.S., a move that could help it sidestep potential tariffs on iPhones.
U.S.-listed chipmakers advanced broadly, with Advanced Micro Devices up 2.5 per cent, Intel gaining 2.1 per cent and Nvidia up 1.1 per cent.
"A major uncertainty has been removed and investors can finally move on," UBS analysts said in a note.
Semiconductor manufacturing equipment supplier Applied Materials and chipmakers Texas Instruments, GlobalFoundries and Broadcom - Apple's partners in the investment effort - climbed between 0.8 per cent and 10.1 per cent.
European chipmakers also joined the rally, with ASML, ASMI and BE Semiconductor Industries climbing about 3 per cent each.
Germany's Infineon said it could not speculate on possible semiconductor tariffs, as no details have been disclosed yet. Its shares were up 0.6 per cent.
Trump's latest on semiconductor tariffs seemingly rules out Taiwanese chip contract manufacturer TSMC, which makes chips for most U.S. companies, including Nvidia, as it has factories in the U.S.
"The market remains keen to buy TSMC on dips. Investors also believe they need to remain positioned in AI - with or without tariffs," UBS analysts said.
TSMC shares closed almost 5 per cent higher to hit all-time highs, while Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix climbed 2.5 per cent and 1.4 per cent, respectively.
South Korea's Samsung and SK Hynix will also not be subjected to 100 per cent tariffs on chips, the country's top trade envoy said.
Samsung has invested in two chip fabrication plants in Austin and Taylor, Texas, while SK Hynix has announced plans to build an advanced chip packaging plant and research and development facility for artificial intelligence products in Indiana.
Since stepping into the White House in January, Donald Trump has made several tariff threats, specifically on semiconductors, aimed at reshaping the supply chain of the industry and spurring domestic production.
"The (100 per cent tariff) figure fits Trump's approach of 'open high, negotiate down' and the final figure could be similar to reciprocal tariffs to limit inflation in consumer goods, given that many have chips," said Phelix Lee, senior equity analyst at Morningstar.
Not everyone has come out of the latest blitz on the right side, with the Philippines and Malaysia looking to find out more details about the tariff rate.
Dan Lachica, the president of the trade body for the Philippine semiconductor industry, said 70 per cent of its electronics exports are semiconductors and the new tariff rate would be "devastating". Philippine stocks were down 0.1 per cent after falling as much as 0.9 per cent during the day.
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Straits Times
11 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Non-invasive depression treatment TMS helped engineer get his life back
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox SINGAPORE – Mr Ng Chee Hiong shunned contact with others for years, staying at home for days on end, self-isolating – at least on one occasion – for as long as two months and only coming out after running out of food. And when he made it to the outside world, he would walk staring straight down at the pavement, a hat worn low, his mop of long hair shielding him from seeing those around him. Depression and anxiety has haunted Mr Ng, 52, for over a quarter of a century. He said that he had a difficult childhood beset by family problems. Things went bad after he experienced study-related stress. Mr Ng said: '1998 was (when I had) my first appointment with a psychiatrist... I was studying in the university and the stress was tremendous. My personal life was also not good.' He was diagnosed with depression and anxiety that year, and started treatment. 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Furthermore, about 50 per cent of their patients experienced a significant improvement, becoming virtually asymptomatic. Dr Tay said they also use TMS for patients with OCD, though that is less popular as it involves the provocation of the patient's symptoms to activate specific brain circuits before the session. Each session of TMS usually lasts around 3 minutes or 18.5 minutes, depending on the protocol prescribed. There is no pain, but the frequency of sessions and cost might deter some patients. The recommended number of TMS sessions is about 30, conducted daily over six weeks, or twice or thrice daily over two to three weeks. Each session costs $125. Mr Ng completed 30 TMS sessions in mid-2022. That was after his long-time private sector psychiatrist retired and advised him to find not just a new psychiatrist but also a psychologist to help him. He found both, and he achieved a good response with the TMS treatment. Encouraged by this progress, he continued his medication and therapy with a psychologist at KTPH. However, Mr Ng experienced a return of his symptoms around nine months later, and went for a second course of TMS in early 2023. To sustain these gains, he has continued with monthly maintenance TMS ever since. He pays for his sessions, as the maintenance sessions are not covered under MediShield Life, which covers up to 24 sessions for the first round of TMS treatment, and up to 15 sessions if the treatment is repeated. TMS became available in Singapore in 2015, when Promises Healthcare in the private sector brought it in. IMH started offering it soon after for patients with treatment-resistant depression. About three years ago, it started to use it for patients with OCD. In 2024, IMH started clinical trials to study a personalised form of TMS, which involves mapping a person's brain using scans to locate a precise spot to target during the stimulation. Another hospital here tha t offers TMS for treatment-resistant depression is the National University Hospital.
Straits Times
11 minutes ago
- Straits Times
India pauses plans to buy US arms after Trump's tariffs
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox New Delhi has put on hold its plans to procure new US weapons and aircraft. NEW DELHI - New Delhi has put on hold its plans to procure new US weapons and aircraft, according to three Indian officials familiar with the matter, in India's first concrete sign of discontent after tariffs imposed on its exports by President Donald Trump dragged ties to their lowest level in decades. India had been planning to send Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to Washington in the coming weeks for an announcement on some of the purchases, but that trip has been cancelled, two of the people said. Mr Trump on Aug 6 imposed an additional 25 per cent tariff on Indian goods as punishment for Delhi's purchases of Russian oil, which he said meant the country was funding Russia's invasion of Ukraine. That raised the total duty on Indian exports to 50 per cent – among the highest of any US trading partner. 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CNA
16 minutes ago
- CNA
SoftBank buys Foxconn's Ohio plant to advance Stargate AI push, Bloomberg News reports
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