Chip Stocks Tumble, Oil Prices Climb on US-Iran Tensions

Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Hello, this is Leonie Kidd coming to you from London.

The jitters around chip stocks have become a persistent market trend. This week kicks off with another leg down, led by South Korea's SK Hynix.

Whether it's just profit-taking or signs of deeper concerns about the AI trade remains to be seen.

What you need to know today

Steep losses for South Korea's Kospi have triggered circuit breakers and halted trading. This comes after index heavyweight SK Hynix sank over 10% in Asian trade. The move reflects a mix of profit-taking and uncertainty over how the newly U.S.-listed shares should be valued relative to the Korean stock.

The South Korean memory-chip maker had jumped 13% in its Wall Street debut on Friday, reflecting strong appetite from U.S. investors for AI-linked semiconductor stocks.

"Everybody's really confused about what's going to happen to the memory demand and where the fair price is," Daniel Yoo, global strategist at Yuanta Securities, said on "Squawk Box Asia."

Shares across the chip space fell in Asia, with Samsung leading the declines.

Futures in both the U.S. and Europe are firmly in the red.

No Strait answer

Oil prices rose on Monday after the U.S. and Iran exchanged a series of strikes over the weekend.

U.S. Central Command launched more missile attacks on Iran in response to the targeting of a container ship transiting through the Strait of Hormuz.

Meanwhile, Iranian state media said Tehran's forces had hit U.S. targets in Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman, also claiming that the Strait was closed.

Earnings playbook

Reporting season gets underway this week, with big names including JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs and Netflix leading the pack. FactSet data shows that analysts estimate S&P 500 profits rose 23.3% year-over-year in the June quarter. If confirmed, that will mark the second straight quarter of earnings per share growth greater than 20%. Get the full details on CNBC Pro here.

In Europe, Dutch semiconductor equipment supplier ASML is the big one to watch on Wednesday. In Asia, chip giant TSMC will headline earnings on Thursday.

— Leonie Kidd

And finally...

Sen. Lindsey Graham, influential lawmaker and Trump ally, dies at 71 after a brief illness

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., has unexpectedly died, his office said Sunday.

"On the evening of Saturday, July 11, U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham passed away from a brief and sudden illness," Graham's office said in a statement on X.

Graham, a prominent Republican and ally of President Donald Trump, was 71.

"Senator Graham's family appreciates prayers at this time and asks for privacy during this incredibly difficult period," his office added.

— Azhar Sukri, Justin Papp, Angela D. Greiling Keane