Global chip stocks soar as Huang helps fuel AI euphoria at Davos

Global semiconductor stocks advanced, as comments by Nvidia Corp Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang at Davos helped reinforce investor enthusiasm for the artificial intelligence trade.

Memory chipmaker Samsung Electronics Co gained as much as 5% Thursday to an all-time high, helping drive South Korea’s benchmark Kospi above 5 000 for the first time. That came after the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rose more than 3% to a fresh record on Wednesday, with a boost from Nvidia.

The gains came amid broad risk-on trade after US President Donald Trump withdrew his threat of tariffs on some European nations over backing for Greenland. Huang further fueled that rally with his comments to the World Economic Forum in Switzerland, saying that the global AI buildout will require trillions of dollars of investment.

“Davos is all about AI Revolution,” Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives wrote in a note. “While there are clearly geopolitical worries in a constantly changing global landscape, the one thing that is clear from Davos is that the US tech world is dominating the AI Revolution, with China a distant second.”

The AI boom is riding high into 2026, defying concerns about lofty valuations as well as tensions between various nations. Earnings due later Thursday from Intel Corp. may shed further light on crucial industry capex plans, along with results next week from Apple Inc. and Meta Platforms Inc.

“The expansion of AI infrastructure and a surge in data storage demand are further tightening overall supply,” said Ha SeokKeun, chief investment officer at Eugene Asset Management Co. “The market is now increasingly pricing in these strengthened industry fundamentals.”

Among the day’s other notable moves, shares of Disco Corp. surged 17% in Tokyo after the chip equipment maker posted better-than-expected earnings. Asia’s largest stock Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. gained as much as 1.7%.

China’s tech shares were mixed, following strong recent gains driven by Beijing’s push for tech self-reliance. Huang is planning to travel to China in late January as he works to reopen a crucial market for Nvidia’s chips.

While AI’s funding needs are massive, there seems to be no shortage of investors willing to pile in through private deals as well as in the markets. OpenAI Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman has been meeting with top investors in the Middle East to line up funding for an investment round of at least $50 billion, at a valuation of about $750 billion to $830 billion.

© 2026 Bloomberg

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