NEW YORK, Jan 2, 2026, 13:58 ET — Regular session
- Baidu gains after saying its AI chip unit Kunlunxin filed for a Hong Kong listing; Alibaba also rises.
- Chipmakers lead the AI trade while some megacap platforms lag.
- Traders are watching next week’s U.S. jobs and inflation data, plus early earnings guidance on AI spending.
Baidu jumped on Friday after the Chinese search giant said its artificial-intelligence chip unit Kunlunxin had confidentially filed for a Hong Kong listing on Jan. 1, paving the way for a spinoff and separate listing. By 1:40 p.m. ET, Baidu was up 14.2% and Alibaba rose 6.2%. Baidu said the offering size and structure are not final and Kunlunxin is expected to remain a subsidiary after the spinoff. Reuters
The filing lands in the first U.S. session of 2026, when AI stocks are again setting the tone for tech trading after last year’s big run. Investors are weighing whether the build-out of AI infrastructure will keep generating demand for pricey chips and cloud capacity.
China’s push to fund domestic chip production adds another variable for the sector. U.S. export restrictions limit access to some advanced chips, making any policy shift a direct catalyst for both U.S. suppliers and Chinese challengers.
Chinese AI chip designer Shanghai Biren Technology closed up 76% in its Hong Kong debut on Friday after raising HK$5.58 billion, and Reuters said more AI and semiconductor offerings are lined up for early January. “AI is fundamentally transformative, driving keen investor appetite,” said Li He, a partner at law firm Davis Polk. Biren builds graphics processing units, or GPUs — chips used to train and run AI models — and its prospectus flagged risks tied to U.S. export controls. Reuters
AI chipmakers also advanced in the U.S., with Nvidia up 1.6% and AMD higher by 3.3% by early afternoon, while Broadcom added 0.3%. Semiconductor exchange-traded funds, which hold baskets of chip stocks, outperformed: the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) was up 3.8% and the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) gained 3.4%.
Some of the biggest buyers of AI hardware lagged, with Microsoft down 2.5% and Amazon off 2.3%. Meta fell 1.5%, while Alphabet rose about 0.5%; the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) slipped 0.1% and the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ), which tracks the Nasdaq 100, fell 0.4%.
U.S. stocks started 2026 on an uneven note as early gains faded, with chip strength offset by declines in consumer discretionary and communications shares, Reuters reported. The Philadelphia SE Semiconductor index — a gauge of major U.S. chipmakers — was up 3.4% earlier in the session. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq were set for a fifth session in the red, dashing hopes for a “Santa Claus rally,” a seasonal lift often seen in the last five trading days of December and the first two of January. Reuters
On Wednesday, the South China Morning Post reported that TikTok owner ByteDance plans to spend about 100 billion yuan ($14.29 billion) on Nvidia AI chips in 2026, if Nvidia is allowed to sell its H200 processors in China. Reuters said it could not immediately verify the report. Reuters
That keeps China policy in focus for AI chipmakers. Investors are weighing how much demand can be converted into shipments — and at what prices — if export rules tighten or loosen.
Next week’s U.S. labor-market data, including the monthly jobs report due Jan. 9, is expected to test rate-cut expectations, while the consumer price index arrives on Jan. 13. Fourth-quarter earnings season starts in earnest that week, with JPMorgan due to report on Jan. 13, and investors will look for guidance on spending and demand. Analysts expect S&P 500 earnings to rise 15.5% in 2026 after an estimated 13% increase in 2025, according to LSEG IBES data cited by Reuters. Reuters
For AI stocks, the earnings calls will be watched for clues on two fronts: whether cloud customers keep signing large data-center commitments and whether chipmakers can meet demand without sparking price competition. A softer jobs report would typically support high-growth tech by pulling bond yields down, though an abrupt slowdown can also revive recession fears.
The split between chipmakers and the biggest tech platforms on Friday left investors watching for the next catalyst, from earnings to export policy headlines. Until then, AI stocks remain vulnerable to abrupt, headline-driven swings.
