US EQUITY OPEN: Tech hit hard as SK Hynix concerns weigh on broader tech

OPEN: US indices opened in the first trading session of the week in the red, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 (-1.7%) the clear laggard and weighed on by plunging SK Hynix shares amid earning concerns. As such, Technology is the clear underperforming sector, with Health the only other one in the red. Highlighting the broad-based tech losses, the semiconductor ETF SOXX (-4.2%) and memory ETF DRAM (-9.5%) are both being hit hard. Elsewhere, US/Iran tensions are once again flaring as over the weekend US CENTCOM said it had "completed" its latest round of strikes in Iran, in response to Iran targeting commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz. Given this, WTI and Brent are firmer by c. USD 2.50/bbl as traders await further updates, with the weeks key risk events being the start of earnings season, Fed Chair Warsh testimony, and inflation data. G10s are mainly lower against the Greenback, but the Kiwi once again outperforms, with the Yen and Swissy the underperformers. Treasuries are lower, as are precious metals with spot gold seeing greater losses than its counterpart.

STOCK SPECIFICS:

• Apple (AAPL) sued OpenAI & two former employees for alleged theft of trade secrets
• SK Hynix (SKHY) Seoul-listed shares tumbled by more than 15% overnight amid earnings concerns.
• MGM Resorts International (MGM) negotiating a potential deal with Barry Diller’s People after receiving a takeover offer.
• Shopify (SHOP) upgraded at Jefferies to 'Buy' from 'Hold'.
• First Hawaiian (FHB) and TriCo Bancshares (TCBK) agreed to an all-stock merger in which FHB will acquire TCBK, creating a bank with approximately USD 34bln in assets.
• Samsung Electronics begun preparations to manufacture Tesla’s AI5 chip using its 2nm process at its Texas plant