Asia: Markets mixed as Nvidia falls short of hopes, eyes on Trump

ASIAN markets were mixed on Thursday (Nov 21) as another blockbuster earnings from chip titan Nvidia smashed forecasts but still left investors disappointed, while sentiment was also being swayed by geopolitical concerns.

Bitcoin reached an all-time peak above US$95,000 as it continued its run towards US$100,000 on optimism that the incoming US president will usher in an era of deregulation for cryptocurrencies.

All eyes had been on the release from Nvidia, which has been at the forefront of a global tech surge that has helped push some markets to multiple records owing to voracious demand for all things linked to artificial intelligence.

And once again, the firm topped expectations, announcing on Wednesday that it made a US$19 billion profit on record high revenue in the July to September quarter, while sales reached US$35.1 billion – about US$2 billion more than estimated.

However, its shares fell in after-hours trade, even as chief executive Jensen Huang declared that the “age of AI is in full steam, propelling a global shift to Nvidia computing” and that its keenly anticipated Blackwell processing platform is in full production.

Observers said investors had been hoping for an even bigger blowout report, with Bloomberg saying some had been hoping for sales of as much as US$41 billion.

Its shares – which have soared more than 200 per cent year to date – dropped four per cent at one point after-hours.

With Nvidia now the world’s most expensive listed company, its results have become a bellwether of the tech industry.

“I have a feeling we’ve reached peak Nvidia,” said Pendal Group’s Amy Xie Patrick on Bloomberg Television. “This is a stock that beat analyst estimates but didn’t beat enough.”

And SPI Asset Management’s Stephen Innes added: “The bigger question remains: where exactly is the bar for Nvidia now? With expectations veiled in sky-high optimism, even seasoned analysts struggle to get a clear read.

“With so many portfolios already brimming with Nvidia stock, some investors might see this quarter’s results as a minor letdown.”

But he added: “Still, the strength of the numbers, paired with the pipeline of Blackwell chip orders, is enough to keep the dream alive.”

Markets in Asia were mixed in early trade, with Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney, Taipei and Manila in negative territory, while Singapore, Seoul, Wellington and Jakarta slipped.

Bitcoin topped out at more than US$95,004 as it continued its march to the US$100,000 mark on expectations Donald Trump will push through measures to ease regulations on cryptocurrencies. It has surged almost 40 per cent since the US election at the start of the month.

Investors have also been spooked by developments in the Ukraine war after Russia said Kyiv had fired US-supplied missiles into the country. That was followed by reports that UK-supplied rockets had also been used.

After Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said earlier that the use of US missiles showed Western countries wanted to “escalate” the conflict, adding that “we will be taking this as a qualitatively new phase of the Western war against Russia”.

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree Tuesday lowering the threshold for using nuclear weapons.

Investors are also keeping watch on Trump’s picks for his cabinet, with the fingering of China hawk Howard Lutnick for commerce secretary fuelling worries of another painful trade war.

Lutnick has expressed support for a tariff level of 60 per cent on Chinese goods, alongside a 10 per cent tariff on all other imports. AFP