Chinese chipmakers boom; ARK exodus; Cybertruck starts production

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Chinese chipmakers boom on curbs

With the chip wars rolling on, and Beijing racing to boost self-sufficiency across the semiconductor supply chain, two leading Chinese chip equipment makers are expecting to see their profits more than double: Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment [688012.SS] has said net income likely grew by up to 120% in the first half of 2023, while Naura Technology Group [002371.SZ] on Friday reported a 121–156% increase in profit.

ARK exodus

Investors have withdrawn a net $717m from Cathie Wood’s flagship ARK Innovation ETF [ARKK] over the last 12 months. This represents a major sea change in its fortunes: a pandemic darling, the fund was known for making winning bets on disruptive tech, and was once the largest ETF, with $30bn under management, a figure which has dropped to $9bn. Its top five holdings are Tesla [TSLA], Coinbase [COIN], Roku [ROKU], Zoom Video Communications [ZM] and Block [SQ].

Cybertruck production kicks off

The Tesla share price was up 1.25% on news that the first Cybertruck has been built at its Austin, Texas facility, several years after the design was unveiled — since when several competitors, including Ford [F] and Rivian [RIVN] have launched their own electric pick-ups. A Bloomberg survey has found that investors think that Elon Musk needs to focus on Tesla in order to stave off rivals in electric vehicle space.

Sony yields on Microsoft/Activision

Sony [SONY] is finally on board with the $75bn merger between Microsoft [MSFT] and Activision [ATVI], confirming ahead of Tuesday’s closing deadline that a 10-year deal had been reached which would see Call of Duty remain accessible to PlayStation users as and when the deal goes through. This news will put wind in the deal’s sails — particularly after the FTC’s bid to block it was thrown out last week.

Berlin fintech Raisin expects €7bn spike in deposits

Goldman Sachs Group [GS], Deutsche Bank [DB] and PayPal [PYPL] have all invested in Raisin, a Berlin-based fintech firm. CEO Tamaz Georgadze has said he expects deposits with the firm to increase to above €50bn from €43bn at present, with interest rate hikes increasingly driving lenders to seek alternate funding. Raisin aims to add up to 30 banks to its platform this year, many of which will be in the US.