SK Hynix subscriptions revive AI optimism
We see the strongest bounce in the most volatile indices in recent days, namely the technology Nasdaq (+0.65%) and the small‑cap Russell 2000 (+1.15%).
Nasdaq futures have effectively returned to pre‑war‑sell‑off levels, supported by the new number one topic in the tech sector: the debut of Korean semiconductor giant SK Hynix on the New York Stock Exchange.
The company’s shares on the German Xetra rose from the ashes, bouncing off a local trough of about 25% in just two sessions and breaking out of the cautious pessimism that has recently been observed in semiconductor manufacturers.
SK Hynix remains the leader in the HBM (High Bandwidth Memory) market, essential in the architecture of producers such as Nvidia and AMD. Subscription demand exceeded the number of available shares sevenfold, and the bulk of the record demand comes from long‑term investing top‑tier asset funds.
Such a strong institutional investor presence therefore stands in contrast to the prevailing fears of AI sector overvaluation in recent months and could offer Nasdaq solid support even in the face of a return to geopolitical risk.
Oil retreats despite reduced traffic in the Strait of Hormuz
Conditions in the Middle East are still far from stabilising. Brent crude futures did turn back below the psychological $80 per barrel barrier to about $76‑77 during today’s session, but the future supply remains uncertain. According to the latest Kpler data, transit through the Strait of Hormuz fell on Wednesday to just 23 vessels, half the number before the latest flare‑up between Iran and the US.
It is worth noting that before the conflict the average was about 140 vessels per day, so the resilience of the global economy will largely depend on the ongoing diversification of supplies amid an increasingly chaotic conflict.
Steady gains in the WIG20
The session on the Warsaw market finished rather calmly, and the domestic WIG20 added a modest 0.4% after yesterday it rebounded from the global wave of pessimism and closed flat.
By comparison, the CAC40 in France and the DAX in Germany, which recorded wide losses yesterday, rebounded today by 0.8%.
The Orlen index, which topped the charts yesterday, finished the session flat, while PKO BP shares (+1.9%) are not slowing down, riding the wave of the European banking sector’s rebound.
Pessimism remains on shares of Żabka (-1.8%), CD Projekt (-1%), Kruk (-1.5%), and Orange (-1.1%).
