Weekly Market Recap | Sep 02 – Sep 08

Key Takeaways

Nvidia’s Market Plunge: AI trade tensions, chip supply woes, and antitrust scrutiny lead to a $406 billion market value loss for the tech giant.
UK Halts Arms Exports to Israel: Concerns over potential humanitarian law violations prompt the UK to suspend some arms licenses.
Safe Superintelligence Raises $1 Billion: OpenAI co-founder’s new AI firm secures major funding for developing safe AI models.
U.S. households now hold a record 42% of their financial assets in stocks, driven by rising wealth from the surging market.

Andretti Acquisition II, a blank check company, has launched its IPO on Nasdaq (POLEU) at $10.00 per share, offering 20,000,000 shares as of September 6, 2024. The company seeks to acquire a target business, driving growth and value creation through strategic combinations.
Vine Hill Capital Investment Corp, a blank check company, has announced its initial public offering (IPO) on the Nasdaq exchange under the stock symbol VCICU. The company, formed to pursue a merger, share exchange, asset acquisition, or similar business combination, has priced its IPO at $10.00 per share, offering 20,000,000 shares as of September 6, 2024.
Pheton Holdings Ltd, a China-based holding company, has launched its initial public offering (IPO). The company, which focuses on developing and commercializing treatment software for brachytherapy through its subsidiary Beijing Feitian Zhaoye Technology Co., Ltd., has priced its IPO at $4.00 per share, offering 2,500,000 shares as of September 5, 2024
Powell Max Ltd, a holding company, has announced its initial public offering (IPO) on the Nasdaq exchange under the stock symbol PMAX. The company, which specializes in providing financial communications services to support capital market compliance and transaction needs for corporate clients and their advisors in Hong Kong, has priced its IPO at $4.00 per share, offering 1,650,000 shares as of September 5, 2024.

Wall Street traders are increasingly concerned about economic risks, as stocks, bonds, and commodities all drop. A JPMorgan model indicates rising recession odds in bonds and commodities, while stocks have yet to fully reflect these risks.
Nvidia lost $406 billion in market value this week, dropping 15% over the past two weeks due to AI trade concerns, chip issues, and a U.S. antitrust probe. Despite this, the stock is still up over 100% this year, reflecting strong long-term confidence in AI.
Americans are increasingly bullish on stocks, with strong investments pushing the S&P 500 up 18% this year. U.S. households now hold a record 42% of their financial assets in stocks, driven by rising wealth from the surging market.
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) will continue to seek $4 billion in damages from the estate of Mike Lynch, following his recent death in a yacht accident. Lynch, a British tech tycoon, was previously found liable for fraud in the collapse of Autonomy Corp.
OPEC+ may delay a planned production increase in response to weak oil prices, opting to maintain current output levels.
The U.S. Justice Department escalated its antitrust investigation into Nvidia by issuing subpoenas, seeking evidence of the chipmaker’s potential violations. Concerns include Nvidia’s dominance in AI processors and whether it penalizes customers who don’t use its chips exclusively.

The UK has suspended some arms export licenses to Israel over concerns that British-made components could be used in Gaza, potentially violating international humanitarian law. The decision affects about 10% of the licenses.
Netanyahu refuses to halt military action against Hamas despite protests over hostage deaths, as U.S. and U.K. push for a ceasefire.
In Argentina’s impoverished La Rioja province, facing economic challenges from President Milei’s cuts, the local government introduced its own currency, the chacho, to support residents.
Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Mongolia, his first trip to an ICC member since an arrest warrant was issued against him. Discussions also included the Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline project.
The U.S. Treasury Department imposed new sanctions on Russian state-funded broadcaster RT and its leaders for attempting to recruit American influencers in a covert influence campaign.
Western companies exiting Russia after the Ukraine invasion faced substantial losses. Firms such as McDonald’s and Coca-Cola, pressured by public and governmental demands, sold their assets at significant discounts.

China’s growing industrial robotics sector is seeing local companies gain market share, though foreign leaders Fanuc and ABB still dominate in high-end tech. Both firms could see increased demand if China’s economy stabilizes.
Nvidia is investing in Sakana AI’s $100 million funding round, partnering with the Japanese AI firm to advance AI research, data centers, and community-building in Japan.
OpenAI co-founder Ilya Sutskever’s new AI firm, Safe Superintelligence, has raised $1 billion from top investors including Andreessen Horowitz and Sequoia Capital. The startup focuses on developing safe AI models.
Apple’s new iPhone, featuring AI technology, is expected to show modest sales growth over the next two years due to a gradual AI rollout and a mature market.
In-flight Wi-Fi is inconsistent, but new satellite tech from SpaceX’s Starlink is set to improve speeds and reliability significantly.
Microsoft’s new AI PCs using Qualcomm-Arm chips struggle with game compatibility, affecting titles like “Fortnite.” While offering longer battery life and faster processing, they face performance issues due to the need for software translation.

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