Micron Technology plans to invest about US$24 billion in Singapore over the next 10 years as it expands its manufacturing facility to meet surging demand for memory chips amid the artificial-intelligence boom. The Boise, Idaho-based chip giant on Tuesday said it broke ground on an advanced wafer fabrication facility located within the company’s existing NAND manufacturing complex in Singapore. The plant represents a planned investment of 31 billion Singapore dollars, equivalent to US$24.41 billion, over the next decade, with wafer output scheduled to begin in the second half of 2028, it said in a statement. Micron manufactures about 98% of its top-end flash memory chips, known as NAND, in Singapore, according to the country’s Economic Development Board. Micron in December raised its outlook for demand growth for two of its main products, saying supply isn’t keeping up with demand as AI developers scramble for memory-storage capacity. Last week, it announced plans to buy a Taiwanese chip-making site for US$1.8 billion, and it recently broke ground on a US$100 billion mega chip-making facility in New York.

On Monday, the SMI closed at 13,142 points, virtually unchanged. Among individual stocks, Nestlé dropped 0.9 percent. The SMI heavyweight continues to be weighed down by the recall of baby food that may be contaminated with bacteria. Logitech, which has been struggling recently, gained 1.1 percent. The company will present its financial results late on Tuesday. Givaudan (+0.2%) and Roche (+0.7%) will also publish their figures on Thursday of this week. Following a positive analyst commentary, UBS improved by 0.4 percent. Jefferies raised its price target for the bank's shares from CHF 37 to CHF 55 and reaffirmed its buy recommendation. Among smaller caps, Schindler added 0.2 percent after a positive analyst commentary. Citi analysts upgraded the stock to buy from neutral and raised the price target from CHF 296 to CHF 327.

Europe
European stock markets closed virtually flat on Monday, adopting a wait-and-see approach ahead of the Federal Reserve's (Fed) announcement on Wednesday evening. The Stoxx Europe 600 index edged up 0.2% to 609.6 points. In Paris, the CAC 40 fell 0.15% and the SBF 120 lost 0.2%. In Frankfurt, the DAX 40 gained 0.1%, while the FTSE 100 ended practically unchanged in London. DANONE (-2.3%): The food group's share price slipped on Monday after the company announced on Friday evening that it was recalling new batches of infant formula as part of a wave of recalls affecting several European baby food manufacturers. ESSILORLUXXOTICA (-2.9%): US smart glasses company Solos Technology filed a patent infringement lawsuit on Friday against Facebook parent company Meta, sunglasses specialist Oakley, and eyewear and corrective lens manufacturer EssilorLuxottica. NEXITY (+18.35%): The real estate developer's share price posted the strongest performance within the SBF 120 index on Monday, buoyed by the inclusion of a housing stimulus package in France's 2026 finance bill. RYANAIR (-2.3%): The Irish airline reported strong revenue growth for the third quarter of its fiscal year on Monday. However, the group's profits were hit by a provision related to a financial penalty in Italy.

United States
Gold prices tore past another milestone, with tariff threats against Canada and the possibility of a fresh U.S. government shutdown adding fuel to the metal's historic rally. Futures for the precious metal rose 2% to surpass $5,000 a troy ounce for the first time., settling at $5,079.70. Silver futures soared 14%, its biggest one-day jump in 40 years, to a fresh record above $115 a troy ounce. Macro concerns didn't trip up stocks however, as the three major benchmarks rose on the day, led by the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The blue-chip index added 0.6%, with the S&P 500 moving 0.5% higher and the Nasdaq composite rising 0.4%. USA Rare Earth jumped 7.9% to $26.72. The company has signed a letter of intent with the U.S. government to provide an investment of $1.6 billion in the mining company. Micron Technology slipped 2.6% after Reuters reported that Samsung Electronics was set to supply Nvidia with next-generation memory chips. CoreWeave climbed 5.7%. The AI cloud company unveiled an expanded partnership with Nvidia, which includes a $2 billion investment from the chip maker. Intel fell 5.8%. Shares dropped 17% on Friday after the company issued a downbeat outlook. Advanced Micro Devices fell 3.2%, putting the chip maker on course to snap a nine-session winning streak. AMD has gained 28% over that span, with investors growing more optimistic about the chip maker’s business prospects after assessing the financial results of rival Intel. Revolution Medicines declined 17%. Merck is no longer in talks to buy the cancer-drug biotech.

Asia
In Asia, major indexes broadly closed with gains on Tuesday. The Nikkei 225 (Tokyo) is up 0.7%. The Kospi index rises 2.3 percent. The US government is hiking tariffs on certain South Korean goods from 15% to 25% as the country's parliament has not yet approved a provisional trade agreement signed last year. Shares in memory chip manufacturer SK Hynix jumped 7.5 percent. The company is considered a winner of AI-driven inflation in RAM prices, as evidenced by a recent supply deal with Microsoft. Samsung Electronics climbed 3.2 percent. Shares in carmaker Hyundai Motors, on the other hand, are down 0.5 percent. On the Chinese stock markets, the Shanghai Composite is up 0.2 percent and the Hang Seng Index has improved by 1.0 percent. Among individual stocks, Anta Sports climbed 1.8 percent. The Chinese sporting goods manufacturer is acquiring a 29.06 percent stake in Puma from the Pinault family for €1.51 billion. Anta, owner of brands such as Fila and Jack Wolfskin, is purchasing 43.01 million Puma shares at a price of €35 per share. The stock closed at €21.63 on Monday.

Bonds
U.S. government debt yields are steady following stale data amid rising political tension ahead of the Fed meeting. The Fed is expected to keep rates on hold Wednesday and Chair Powell is likely to face questions about the central bank’s independence. The threat of a government shutdown increases as Democrats link support for funding to changes in immigration enforcement. The 10-year Treasury note yield lost 3 basis points on Monday to 4.21 percent.

Analysis
Schindler rating: Citigroup upgrades to Buy (Neutral) – target price CHF 327 (296)
Glencore rating: HSBC downgrades to Hold (Buy) – target price GBP 515
UBS target price: Jefferies upgrades to CHF 55 (37) – Buy

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