Applied Materials is looking to ramp up its manufacturing capacity to meet continued semiconductor solutions demand as the company’s profit and revenue grow. The semiconductor-equipment maker is responding to long-term demand signals by adding new manufacturing and customer support teams, Chief Financial Officer Brice Hill told analysts on a Thursday call. The company hopes to build capacity to double quarterly semiconductor system output from its current level by 2028, he said. The company is also planning its next manufacturing capacity expansion, Hill said, “ensuring we have the option to support further increases in demand by 2030.” Hill added that the company has higher prices for both new and existing products, supporting margin expansion. The company stands to benefit from continued demand for DRAM memory technology, foundry-logic, and advanced packaging, Chief Executive Officer Gary Dickerson told analysts. “These are areas where Applied has strong leadership positions and an innovative pipeline of next generation solutions, supporting strong revenue and margin growth in 2027 and beyond,” he said.

The Swiss market ended marginally up on Thursday after holding above the flat line right through the session. The mood was cautious and activity was somewhat subdued due to a lack of significant triggers. The benchmark SMI, which moved in a narrow range between 14,459.25 and 14,526.07. settled at 14,475.13, gaining 25.66 points or 0.18%. Nestle moved up over 2.5%. Lindt & Spruengli, Sandoz Group, Galderma Group and VAT Group gained 1.4%-1.6%. Lonza Group ended 1.2% up. Richemont advanced by nearly 1%, while Swiss Re and Alcon gained 0.6% and 0.4%, respectively. Amrize dropped by about 1.3%. Sika, Partners Group, Roche, Straumann Holding, Geberit, Givaudan, Schindler Ps and Holcim lost 0.5%-1%. Data released by the Federal Statistical Office showed Switzerland's producer and import prices decreased for the third straight month in July, falling by 0.1% in the month, following a 0.3% drop in June. Prices were expected to rise by 0.2%. The producer price index remained flat, while import prices dropped 0.6%, led by falls in crude oil and natural gas, and for petroleum products. On a yearly basis, producer and import prices fell at a stable pace of 2.1% in July. The price index has been falling since May 2023.

Europe
European markets closed weak on Thursday as concerns about U.S.-Iran conflict and continued uncertainty over the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz rendered the mood cautious. Lower oil prices and easing concerns about interest rates helped limit markets' downside. The pan European Stoxx 600 edged down 0.04%. The UK's FTSE 100 dropped 0.56%, Germany's DAX and France's CAC 40 ended lower by 0.12% and 0.28%, respectively. Switzerland's SMI closed 0.18% up. Among other markets in Europe, Belgium, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain and Sweden ended weak. Austria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Netherlands, Norway and Türkiye closed higher. In the UK market, mining and energy stocks declined sharply. Antofagasta ended down 6.8% as the Chilean copper miner delivered mixed first-half results. The company posted a sharp rise in first-half profit but trimmed its 2026 copper output forecast. Rio Tinto, Fresnillo, Endeavour Mining and Anglo American Plc ended lower by 3.5%-4.8%. Glencore declined 2.1%. Metlen Energy & Metals and Weir Group lost 4.1% and 3.7%, respectively. Aberdeen Group, Entain, Rentokil Initial, LSEG and Burberry Group ended down by 2%-3%. Energy stocks BP and Shell closed lower by 1.6% and 1.1%, respectively. Bank stocks HSBC Holdings and Natwest Group also ended notably lower. Lion Finance climbed 5.2%. British American Tobacco moved up 2.75%. Barratt Redrow, Computacenter, Persimmon and Sainsbury (J) gained 2%-2.5%. JD Sports Fashion, Tesco, Imperial Brands, Admiral Group, Scottish Mortgage, Kingfisher, Aviva, Investec, Unilever, Marks & Spencer, Informa and Polar Capital Technology Trust also posted impressive gains.

United States
U.S. stocks rose and the S&P 500 closed at a record high after a report of moderated wholesale inflation eased interest-rate fears. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 69.72 points, or 0.13%, to 53839.99, closing within 1% of a record high. The broad S&P 500 rose 50.49 points, or 0.65%, to 7798.99, a new record high. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite added 214.54 points, or 0.81%, to 26803.03. The Producer Price Index was unchanged in July from June levels, suggesting that factory-gate inflation levelled off before the latest uptick in oil futures. The data reinforced impressions of softening inflation from the consumer-price index earlier in the week. Odds of a rate hike in September fell further in Fed funds futures markets. Artificial-intelligence results were mixed. Cerebras fell 12% to $231.01 after a surge in revenue for the maker of AI-supporting chips failed to meet investors' increasingly lofty expectations. Cisco shares tumbled 8.4% to $113.47 despite Chief Executive Chuck Robbins's description of demand growing at the strongest rate in 30 years due to the AI boom. Analysts said the maker of network equipment took a conservative approach with its growth projections. Investors have debated whether AI demand is strong enough to change the traditionally cyclical nature of the tech hardware business. SanDisk shares rallied 14% to $1,528.11 after the maker of memory chips forecast revenue growth in the mid-to-high-teen percentages annually between fiscal 2028 and 2030. Tapestry shares fell 16% to $128.39 as investors questioned how long a resurgence in demand for the luxury design house's Coach bags can compensate for weakness at the Kate Spade brand.

Asia
In late trading on Friday, slight losses are the prevailing trend on Asian stock markets. However, the stock exchanges in Seoul and Tokyo are bucking the trend and building on the gains of recent days. South Korea’s Kospi is now rising for the fifth day in a row and is keeping its recovery rally going with a gain of 2 per cent. Japan’s Nikkei 225 is being driven by electronics and technology shares and has climbed by 0.4 per cent to 68,591 points.

Bonds
The yield on the 10-year U.S Treasury note fell 0.051 percentage point to 4.640% . The yield on the policy-sensitive two-year Treasury declined 0.059 percentage point to 4.139%.

Analysis
UBS raises Tecan target to CHF 222 (208) – Buy
JPMorgan raises Hapag-Lloyd target to EUR 75 (70) – Underweight
JPMorgan raises Moeller Maersk target to DKK 10,000 (9,200) – Underweight

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