The semiconductor market was jolted on Wednesday as stocks of major players like NVIDIA Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA), Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD), and Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO) took a sharp downturn. This came in the wake of reports suggesting that President Joe Biden is contemplating stricter trade restrictions with China and comments made by former President Donald Trump regarding Taiwan.
What Happened: During an interview with CNBC’s Closing Bell Overtime, Bernstein analyst Stacy Rasgon shared his insights on the situation. Rasgon pointed out that Trump’s comments on Taiwan seemed to suggest that he was not overly concerned about protecting Taiwan, possibly indicating that he expected something in return.
Rasgon said that Trump “doesn’t sound as concerned about protecting Taiwan. It kind of suggests he doesn’t want to do it for free. I’m having flashbacks to when he was president.”
Rasgon added, “I don’t think he was saying that protecting Taiwan is not important—it clearly is important—but it certainly did impact all of the semiconductor companies that depend on Taiwan.”
This, according to Rasgon, had a significant impact on semiconductor companies that rely on Taiwan. He also noted that companies with a larger U.S. presence, such as Texas Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ:TXN), fared better on Wednesday.
Rasgon also warned of potential increased volatility as the U.S. presidential election approaches.
Why It Matters: Trump’s comments on Taiwan have been a source of concern for the semiconductor industry. This is not the first time that Trump’s remarks have impacted the market. His comments on Taiwan had also led to a decline in the shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (NYSE:TSM).
The semiconductor sector has been under pressure due to the Biden administration’s potential tightening of regulatory restrictions on chip exports to China. This has led to one of the worst trading days for the sector in years, with major ETFs like the iShares Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SOXX) and the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SMH) experiencing significant declines.
Trump’s comments on Taiwan are part of a broader pattern of criticism of the Biden administration’s China policies. This has led to concerns about China’s potential influence over the U.S. and the need for stronger measures against China.
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This story was generated using Benzinga Neuro and edited by Kaustubh Bagalkote
