Axios Closer

July 28, 2025
Monday β .
Today's newsletter is 587 words, a 2-minute read.
π The dashboard: The S&P 500 closed nearly flat.
π₯ Today's stock spotlight: Super Micro Computer (+10.2%). The AI server maker jumped on reports that the U.S. has paused new restrictions on tech exports to China during trade talks.
1 big thing: Chips' shifting landscape
Samsung's $16.5 billion deal to manufacture chips for Tesla is the latest headline jolting semiconductor stocks in recent days.
- π Samsung shares rose nearly 7% in South Korea, showing just how important a major customer is in the contract chip manufacturing business.
- π Failing to secure such a customer helped send Intel's stock plummeting over 8% Friday.
- πͺπΊ And the EU trade deal announced yesterday carries big implications across the sector too, with Dutch chip-equipment manufacturer ASML rising on news that such products will move both ways tariff-free.
The Tesla contract is a much-needed win for Samsung's foundry business, which makes chips that other clients design. Foundry is a market dominated by Taiwan-based TSMC, which held over 67% of the global share in Q1.
- π For Samsung, which will manufacture the Tesla chips at a coming Texas facility, the deal not only brings in big revenue through 2033 β it also sends a signal of confidence in its fabrication technologies, which could help it win even more customers, analysts say.
π§οΈ Intel is badly in need of this exact type of win. The company last week said it was slashing costs tied to its own foundry business, which has failed to secure any significant customers, and will build out its new fabrication technologies only on pace with confirmed customer commitments.
- "I do not subscribe to the belief that if you build it, they will come," CEO Lip-Bu Tan told investors on a call Friday.
Zoom out: News of the U.S.-EU trade deal, meanwhile, sent shares in ASML up sharply in Amsterdam today.
- The tariff news is good for everyone building and planning new chip facilities in the United States. Intel, Samsung and TSMC are all major clients of ASML, which makes machines critical for advanced chip production.
2. Happening tomorrow: UnitedHealth on tap


UnitedHealth Group is set to report earnings tomorrow, and its new CEO is under pressure to show signs of stability as a DOJ investigation into its Medicare billing practices hangs over the insurer.
- CEO Stephen Hemsley β who returned to the role in the spring with Andrew Witty's sudden exit β recently pledged to "earn back your trust and your confidence."
- π The stock is down about 44% this year.
What to watch: The company is expected to provide earnings guidance after suspending its forecast in May, CNBC reports.
3. π I see what you did there...
"Just buy it."β JPMorgan analyst Matthew Boss in a widely circulated research note today arguing that Nike shares are undervalued, sending the stock up 2.1%.
4. Other happenings
πͺπΊ The European Union issued a preliminary finding accusing Temu of selling counterfeit products and unsafe goods. The Chinese retailer is also being investigated over allegations of fake discounts and reviews. (Bloomberg)
πΌ Investment firm Carlyle named three executives as co-presidents: CFO John Redett, credit head Mark Jenkins and client business head Jeff Nedelman. (Reuters)
πΊ Warner Bros. Discovery said that post-split, its streaming and film studio company will be known as Warner Bros., while its cable company will be called Discovery Global. (Variety)
5. β³οΈ Golf Force One
There's Air Force One and Marine One β and now there's Golf Force One.
- At least that's what it's been dubbed since the Polaris Ranger vehicle was spotted following President Trump while he was golfing on his course in Scotland this weekend, The Daily Beast reports.
- "The souped-up cart arrives roughly 10 months after Trump survived an alleged assassination attempt while golfing," The Daily Beast notes.
ποΈββοΈWhat they're saying: The Secret Service declined to provide details about Golf Force One, saying only that the agency "employs a variety of tools and resources to safeguard our protectees."
ποΈ On this day in 1978, "National Lampoon's Animal House" was released in theaters, spawning an entire generation of college toga parties.
Today's newsletter was edited by Pete Gannon and copy edited by Sheryl Miller.
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