Nvidia slips after earnings, SpaceX & OpenAI IPOs in focus | The Asia Trade 5/21/2026
Speakers
Rolf Bulk
— Head of Semiconductors, Futurum Equities
Tom Kang
— Head of Content, Messari
Ed Al Hussainy
— Global Rate Strategist, Columbia Threadneedle
Anthony Stevens
— Bloomberg Market Producer
Summary
Nvidia reported strong earnings but fell short of the highest expectations, leading to a choppy after-hours reaction. Asian markets rallied on tech optimism, helped by Samsung's last-minute labor deal and easing Iran war concerns. Bond yields retreated on hopes of a US-Iran truce. Speakers highlighted Nvidia's sustained competitive advantages and the ongoing memory chip boom.
- Nvidia revenue beat estimates but guidance disappointed the most bullish investors, resulting in volatile after-hours trading.
- Asian tech stocks rallied, led by Samsung (up ~5%) after avoiding a strike and by SoftBank on AI exposure.
- Samsung reached a tentative labor agreement hours before a planned strike, removing a key supply risk.
- President Trump said the US is in final stages with Iran, sending oil prices lower and bonds higher on ceasefire hopes.
- Global bond yields fell from multi-decade highs, but the inflation and Fed rate outlook remains uncertain.
- Analysts emphasized Nvidia's full-stack integration and GPU cost advantage as durable competitive moats.
- Memory chip prices continue to rise, with Samsung and SK Hynix expected to post record profits this year.
- The BOJ is expected to hike in June as Japan's inflation returns to target and real wage growth emerges.
Trade Ideas
Nvidia's dominance and growth continue.
Nvidia's competitive advantages (cost per token 15x better than AMD, full stack integration, margin advantage ~25%) and new growth engine (CPU business growing to $20B) ensure sustained dominance and growth despite competition. The demand base is broadening beyond hyperscalers, and AI capex is on track to reach $3-4 trillion annually by decade end.
Samsung memory boom continues.
Memory market prices are still rising, Q2 likely even better, and Samsung's profit will break records with demand strong and new factories coming online next year. The labor deal removes a risk and the memory boom should continue throughout the year.
Up Next
This Bloomberg Markets video, published May 21, 2026, features Rolf Bulk, Tom Kang discussing NVDA, 005930.KS. 2 trade ideas extracted by AI with direction and confidence scoring.