Chip Stocks Rally as Nvidia Leads Pre-Market Gains Ahead of PPI Data

S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures climbed Wednesday morning as chip stocks surged in pre-market trading, CNBC reported, with investors also bracing for a fresh inflation reading later in the session.

Nasdaq-100 futures gained 0.7% while S&P 500 futures added 0.2%. Dow Jones futures slipped roughly 124 points. Nvidia shares rose more than 2% before the open. Advanced Micro Devices climbed nearly 2%, and Micron Technology jumped over 5%. The VanEck Semiconductor ETF advanced 2% in early trading.

Jensen Huang’s China Visit Sparks Chip Stock Enthusiasm

The catalyst behind the semiconductor surge was partly geopolitical. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang joined President Donald Trump on a visit to China, where Trump was scheduled to meet President Xi Jinping. Analyst Adam Crisafulli of Vital Knowledge noted that Huang’s late addition to the trip reignited investor appetite for tech, amid hopes around a potential H200 chip export breakthrough. Crisafulli added the sector has not been behaving rationally of late.

Also Read: US-China Trade Tensions Rattle Global Supply Chains

PPI Report Takes Center Stage After Hot CPI

Wednesday’s session was not just about chips. Traders were focused on April’s producer price index, due at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones anticipated a headline monthly gain of 0.5%, matching March’s pace. The core reading, stripping out food and energy, was forecast at 0.4%. The data arrives one session after hotter-than-expected consumer price inflation briefly knocked the S&P 500 and Nasdaq from record highs on Tuesday.

AI Spending Broadens Beyond Big Tech

Despite Tuesday’s pullback, the artificial intelligence investment theme has remained the market’s dominant force throughout 2026. Olaolu Aganga, head of portfolio construction at Citi Wealth, told CNBC that AI capital spending is now expanding well beyond the technology sector. She pointed to energy infrastructure and grid buildout companies as areas offering durable earnings potential for investors who may have missed the initial AI wave.

Stocks on the Move Before the Bell

Several individual names drew attention in pre-market trading. EchoStar shares gained nearly 4.5% after regulators at the Federal Communications Commission approved a $40 billion wireless spectrum sale to AT&T and SpaceX. Alibaba’s U.S.-listed shares fell 3% after the Chinese e-commerce group disclosed an 84% collapse in quarterly profit alongside heavy AI investment commitments. Energy stock Nextpower surged 14% after the company raised its full-year revenue guidance above prior estimates and beat fourth-quarter earnings expectations.

Oil markets remained under pressure. West Texas Intermediate futures slipped roughly 1% to around $101 per barrel as the Trump-Xi summit drew closer.

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