Dutch lithography giant shaping the future of semiconductors
SK Hynix has raised $26.5bn by selling 177.9m American depositary receipts priced at $149, the largest-ever U.S. share sale by a foreign company. Its ADRs have begun trading on Nasdaq under temporary ticker SKHYV (to become SKHY). The company is using proceeds to expand fabs, packaging and EUV capacity as AI-driven memory demand surges.
Thames Water has reported improved profitability but a ballooning debt load and a looming cash crunch. The company is negotiating with creditors, regulators, and the government to secure recapitalisation and avoid temporary nationalisation. A bid from London & Valley Water could offer a 10-year relief on fines in exchange for support, but government clarity remains elusive.
Scotland’s top 500 companies show rising private equity involvement, with US and international investors accounting for nearly 60% of PE stakes. Owners face retirement pressures and calls to derisk wealth as technology and tax changes bite. The data, drawn from Companies House filings and Insider interviews, highlights a shift toward PE-backed growth and governance enhancements.
Global stock markets have rallied to new highs, driven by optimism over US-Iran peace talks and signs of economic resilience. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq have posted record streaks, while the chip sector continues its record-breaking rally, despite ongoing geopolitical uncertainties and recent war-related disruptions.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has joined President Trumps delegation to China and has been pictured in Beijing; the trip has been focusing on trade, AI export controls and Iran. China has not approved any purchases of Nvidias H200 chips and is continuing to push domestic chip development while U.S. export controls remain in place.
The SpaceX IPO has launched, commanding a multi-trillion-dollar market cap and drawing investor attention to AI-focused stocks like Anthropic and OpenAI. Analysts warn about overvaluation and the risk of market concentration as new supply floods the tech sector.
SpaceX has announced a senior unsecured notes offering to raise about $20 billion to refinance a bridge loan and fund expanding AI infrastructure, including Starship and Starlink. The move follows a record IPO and large cash reserves, but faces scrutiny over negative free cash flow and high capital needs.
ASML is at the center of a widening policy dispute as U.S. and Dutch officials scrutinize the company’s ability to export EUV lithography machines to China. New legislation and high-level meetings signal potential curbs that could reshape the global chip supply chain.
South Korea has accelerated its semiconductor push, pledging hundreds of trillions of won in memory fabs and AI data centers. President Lee Jae-myung frames the plan as national survival, aiming to double memory capacity within five years. Samsung and SK Hynix pledge multi‑trillion investments, with broader plans to build new fabs and hubs in the southwest.
Base44 is releasing Base 1, its own large language model to power vibe-coding tools. The move seeks to reduce reliance on frontier models, optimize latency and costs, and offer unique UI generation. The company says it will open access to a new model this summer as it expands its data-driven design stack.
OpenAI has proposed that the U.S. government take roughly a 5% stake in the company and has discussed a plan for other leading AI firms to give similar stakes to a government-backed vehicle. The talks have taken place with Trump administration officials and would likely require congressional approval. (Updated Wed, 08 Jul 2026 07:15:26 +0100)
A wave of AI-related startups has seen funding rounds and IPO groundwork accelerating in China and beyond. Early-round valuations are expanding, with LimX targeting a Hong Kong listing and other players advancing via multi-market rounds. Investors see a robust growth trajectory as humanoid robotics and world models push the industry forward.
Governor Kathy Hochul has signed an executive order pausing new permits for hyperscale data centers using 50 megawatts or more for up to one year. The order directs regulators to produce a state framework on energy, water and community benefits, and signals a tighter national response to data-center-driven pressures on grids and local resources.