1. Memory chip crunch will persist till 2030, SK chairman says.

Each new generation of Nvidia AI chips requires significantly more memory than the last, putting enormous strain on global supply.
Furthermore, AI giants like Alphabet, GOOGL, and OpenAI are locking up large portions of the global memory chip supply by purchasing millions of Nvidia AI chips.
Wafer supply trails demand by 30%+ because new capacity takes 4-5 years to come online. There is no shortcut.
SK Hynix commands a 57% share of the HBM market and is evaluating a US ADR listing to optimize capital access. Stock is up 43% YTD.

2. Despite the Iran war, shares in defense firms have largely flatlined since mid-January.

Partly that is because these stocks were already pricing in a lot of growth.
But the market is also getting pickier.
Chris Garsten, a fund manager at W1M Wealth Management, has been “slightly skeptical of just piling into defense,” saying expensive fighter jets and tanks might not be so relevant in future conflicts. Garsten prefers companies that invest in next-generation products such as Kongsberg and Indra Sistemas.

3. And what about Rheinmetall?

“In 2022-2025, the equity case was on the enormous upside potential as Germany re-arms. Today, investors are wholly focused on execution,” JPMorgan analysts write.
JPMorgan still assumes that Rheinmetall has the fastest top-line and bottom-line growth from 2025 to 2030E. Expectations are still for organic growth of c30% pa for five years.
Morgan Stanley analysts see Rheinmetall experiencing “a temporary confidence gap” and say the stock should trade at a premium to its peers. Meanwhile, Vera Diehl, a portfolio manager at Union Investment Privatfonds, notes that when a stock like Rheinmetall trades sideways during a conflict, people are puzzled. “For me, this is just another ‘chance, or opportunity’ to invest,” she says.
The orders are coming but governments often move at a much slower pace than companies…

/

4. Barron’s says Microsoft correction is overdone.

“Microsoft Azure, its cloud computing service, and the company’s early investment in OpenAI position the company to benefit from AI growth, even if software business models shift.”
“If I look at Microsoft up and down the stack — not just Azure, but the data layer, the developer layer, application, security, even assets like LinkedIn and gaming — I think they could be beneficiaries from AI,” said RBC analyst Rishi Jaluria. “The stock is trading at a below-market multiple on earnings. So I put all those pieces together, and the stock does feel very undervalued to me.”
The company late last year said it had more than 150 million monthly active Copilot users across its platforms. Google's Gemini has more than 650 million monthly users, while ChatGPT has about 900 million weekly active users.

5. In 2025, China bought 90% of Iran’s oil.

Every other buyer EU, India, Japan, Korea has been sanctioned out.

So when Trump asks China to send warships to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, he’s asking the one country keeping Iran financially alive to help militarily contain it.

Not a subscriber yet?