NEW YORK, June 19, 2026, 18:02 (EDT)
- TSMC’s U.S. shares surged 6.9% Thursday, ending at $462.12. Nvidia gained 3.0% to close at $210.69.
- TSMC jumped 9.0% over the four-session week. Nvidia added 2.7%. The PHLX Semiconductor Index was up 7.3%.
- U.S. and Taiwan markets were both shut Friday—Wall Street for Juneteenth, Taiwan for the Dragon Boat Festival.
TSMC’s U.S. shares closed up 6.9% on Thursday, ahead of Nvidia, which added 3.0%, in the last trading day of a holiday-shortened week. The PHLX Semiconductor Index gained 6.4%, with a broad rally across chip names, but TSMC topped Nvidia.
This comparison is important since Nvidia and TSMC are at different stages of the supply chain. Nvidia creates AI processors. TSMC acts as a foundry, making chips for other companies, including advanced chips for AMD and large cloud groups. The spread this week shows investors paid a premium for manufacturing exposure. But this wasn’t a direct victory over a rival.
Chip stocks jumped as a temporary U.S.-Iran deal helped ease worries on oil and inflation. The Nasdaq closed up 1.9% on Thursday and finished the week up 2.43%. Investors are still factoring in possible Fed rate hikes. “All together, the package of data is still supportive,” said Tony Welch, chief investment officer at SignatureFD. Reuters
Taiwan’s central bank kept its benchmark rate at 2% and increased its 2026 growth outlook to 9.45%, up from 7.25%, citing AI-fueled chip demand. That’s not an earnings forecast for TSMC, but it shows just how big the cycle around the chipmaker is.
TSMC keeps saying it can’t meet all orders. “Customer demand is so high, and we can only support so much. We are already working very hard,” CEO C.C. Wei said earlier this month. The chipmaker is trying to keep its fabs from turning into a bottleneck. That puts TSMC in a strong spot as customers fight for its advanced lines. Reuters
Nvidia drew extra support from its own news. The chip giant said Monday it would sell $25 billion in bonds, its first investment-grade deal since 2019, after investor demand hit $85 billion. Nvidia plans to use the funds for general purposes, such as refinancing existing debt. Shares closed up 3.3%.
Nvidia is pointing to new AI infrastructure going live in France. U.S. chips and cloud still dominate in Europe, despite moves by governments for more control at home. “Sovereignty is about having control where it matters — not where the technology is from,” IBM senior VP Ana Paula Assis said. That drive for local say can keep demand up for Nvidia hardware. NVIDIA Blog
Intel was the standout on the day. Shares jumped 10.6% after President Donald Trump said Apple will work with Intel on chip design and manufacturing in the U.S. Neither Apple nor Intel commented, and there were no chip or production details out. If Apple does use Intel as a foundry, that would make Intel another supplier for Apple alongside TSMC. But with no more information, any implications for Intel aren’t clear yet.
Risks aren’t one-sided. Higher rates can hit what buyers will pay for chip stocks, and new export limits or power caps could squeeze Nvidia’s markets. If AI infrastructure spend slows, TSMC could feel it when factory demand drops. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang told the Associated Press policymakers should be “very specific about the risk” when considering export controls. Reuters
Nvidia is set for its annual shareholder meeting June 24. Micron will release earnings after the bell that day. On June 25, the May personal consumption expenditures price index comes out, giving another read on consumer inflation. Together, those events could weigh on both demand for AI hardware and the rate backdrop investors use to gauge valuations.
