Chips and Memory Lead the Session
Chip and memory names moved higher, pushing the SMH (VanEck Semiconductor ETF) to its fourth straight winning day. That gain followed an earlier tech selloff triggered when Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei published an open letter calling for a slowdown in AI development. Rising names included Applied Materials (AMAT), Lam Research (LRCX), and memory makers SanDisk and Seagate (STX).
Cyber stocks gave back some gains during the session but still closed up nearly 8% on the week.
Crypto Euphoria
Crypto-tied companies jumped after Bitcoin topped $80,000. Coinbase (COIN) was one of the top performers, up 12%, while Strategy (MSTR) gained 16%. Bitcoin rose 5% on the week even after two setbacks: the Clarity Act failed to advance in the Senate, and the Fed issued a rate hike.
Bitcoin sits more than 35% below its October highs. Even so, JP Morgan's (JPM) internal model values Bitcoin at $266,000. That model compares Bitcoin with gold on a volatility-adjusted basis, though Bitcoin is far more volatile than gold, and the model gives no timeline. Other firms see Bitcoin rising over the next 12 months but by less. Citi (C) targets $82,000, just above the current price. Bernstein expects almost double that at $150,000. Standard Chartered has a $100,000 target by year-end.
Next Week Ahead
Earnings due: AutoZone (AZO), KB Home (KBH), Cracker Barrel (CBRL), General Mills (GIS), Darden Restaurants (DRI), and Costco (COST).
Data: PMI on Wednesday; jobless claims and new home sales on Thursday; consumer sentiment on Friday. Fed speakers appear throughout the week.
Events: the UN General Assembly starts Tuesday, and the US-China summit brings a Trump-Xi meeting that markets are watching for any announcements.
