Micron Q3 Beat Sparks Global Chip Rally as Dollar Holds

Micron reported fiscal third-quarter results after the US market close Wednesday, posting record quarterly revenue and a larger-than-expected earnings beat. Management forecast fourth-quarter revenue of $50 billion, plus or minus $1 billion, and cited strong generative artificial intelligence demand for high-bandwidth memory and data-center DRAM. The company said hyperscale customers have already booked advanced HBM capacity into 2027. Micron shares rose more than 15% in after-hours trading to about $1,213, lifting semiconductor and hardware stocks worldwide and sending Nasdaq-100 E-mini futures higher in Asian trading.

In regular US trading before the report, the S&P 500 slipped 0.1% and the Nasdaq 100 fell 0.4%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.4% as investors rotated into financials and homebuilders. Micron’s results prompted rapid repositioning in growth names, compressing short positions and prompting buying across semiconductor sectors in Asia and the United States. In the Asia-Pacific session, South Korea’s KOSPI rose about 6% and Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained about 3.7%. Taiwan’s TAIEX and China’s CSI 300 posted smaller advances, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and Australia’s ASX 200 underperformed.

Currency and bond markets showed limited movement. The US Dollar Index was around 101.36, near a 13-month high. Short-term US Treasury yields held near 4.15% for the two-year and about 4.40% for the 10-year. The yen remained under pressure with USD/JPY trading near 161.70, and the Australian and New Zealand dollars weakened against the greenback.

Energy and precious metals prices declined as maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz returned to normal following implementation of a US-Iran 60-day roadmap and temporary petroleum export waivers. Front-month Brent futures traded near $73.38 a barrel and WTI futures settled around $69.87 a barrel. Spot gold fell roughly 2.7% to about $3,999 an ounce as funds reduced holdings in non-yielding assets amid rising nominal yields.

Market participants identified the US Core Personal Consumption Expenditures inflation reading for May and upcoming Federal Reserve commentary as the next key data points that could affect Treasury yields, the dollar and the extent of gains in technology and semiconductor stocks. The timing and level of those releases are expected to influence short-term positioning across equities, bonds and currencies.