Bitget UEX Daily Report | Nasdaq Hits New High; Apple Surpasses $5 Trillion Intraday; SanDisk Rises 6.81% (September 23, 2026)

# 1. Selected Hot News

Federal Reserve Dynamics

U.S. September PMI to be released tonight, "high rates to last longer" remains the market theme

• The preliminary value of the U.S. September S&P Global Manufacturing and Services PMI will be released at 21:45 Beijing time, with market expectations for the Manufacturing PMI around 53.6 and the Services PMI around 55.8.
• The Vice Chair of the Federal Reserve responsible for financial regulation, Barr, is scheduled to speak at 22:05 Beijing time, and the market will focus on his statements regarding inflation, financial conditions, and the subsequent interest rate path.
• After the recent interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve, several officials continue to emphasize the importance of controlling inflation. Energy prices and resilient demand may still limit the space for policy shifts.

Market Impact: If the PMI shows that economic activity continues to expand steadily, the market may further raise expectations for maintaining high rates, putting valuation pressure on high-valuation tech stocks and crypto assets; if the services sector shows a significant cooling, it may alleviate the upward risk of U.S. Treasury yields.

International Commodities

Saudi Arabia reopens east-west oil pipeline, supply recovery expectations suppress oil prices

• Saudi Arabia has resumed operations of the east-west oil pipeline, although initial delivery capacity remains limited. This pipeline can transport crude oil to Red Sea ports, bypassing the Strait of Hormuz.
• The pipeline is designed to have a delivery capacity of about 7 million barrels per day, but full restoration of damaged facilities is expected to take six to eight weeks.
• Iran has proposed reopening the Strait of Hormuz under the condition that the U.S. reduces military pressure and lifts the port blockade, further easing some supply concerns.

Market Impact: The expectation of supply recovery keeps WTI around $90 per barrel, while Brent fluctuates around $99. The recent pullback in oil prices from recent highs helps lower inflation expectations and supports tech stock valuations, but the situation in the Middle East has not completely eased, and the energy market may still remain highly volatile.

International Economic and Trade Policies

Trump-Xi Jinping summit approaching, trade truce and AI policy become focal points

• U.S. President Trump is expected to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping on September 24 in Washington.
• Topics are expected to include extending the trade truce set to expire in November, agricultural products and aircraft purchases, rare earth supply, advanced technology restrictions, and artificial intelligence risk management.
• Both sides may also discuss the situation in Iran and Taiwan issues, but the market is currently more focused on whether a stable economic and trade relationship can be achieved.

Market Impact: If the trade truce is extended, sectors such as semiconductors, cloud computing, consumer electronics, and cross-border e-commerce may benefit; if there are further tightening signals regarding technology restrictions, it may raise the risk premium for AI supply chains.

# 2. Market Review

Commodity and Forex Performance

• Gold Futures: Approximately $4,395.95 per ounce, up 0.45%.
• Silver Futures: Approximately $67.92 per ounce, up 2.09%.
• WTI Crude Oil Futures: Approximately $90.00 per barrel, down 0.57%.
• Brent Crude Oil Futures: Approximately $99.12 per barrel, up 0.52%.
• U.S. Dollar Index (DXY): Approximately 100.55.
• U.S. 10-Year Treasury Yield: Approximately 4.96%.

Driving Analysis: The expectation of supply recovery in the Middle East limits the upside potential for crude oil, but geopolitical risks still keep Brent at a certain premium. Gold is supported by safe-haven demand, but high rates and a strong dollar pose constraints; silver's gains significantly outpace gold, reflecting improved demand for precious metals and industrial expectations.

Cryptocurrency Performance

• BTC: Approximately 86,443 USDT, up 0.64% in 24 hours, with a 24-hour trading volume of about $40.07 billion.
• ETH: Approximately 2,760 USDT, up 0.21% in 24 hours, with a 24-hour trading volume of about $15.24 billion.
• Total Cryptocurrency Market Cap: Approximately $2.94 trillion, up about 0.82% in 24 hours.
• Total Market 24-Hour Trading Volume: Approximately $113 billion, down about 23% from the previous day.

Volume and Price Observation: BTC and ETH maintain upward momentum, but total market trading volume has significantly declined, indicating a cooling of short-term buying enthusiasm, with the market reflecting more of a high-level consolidation. The latest weekly disclosures show that Strategy bought 950 BTC from September 14 to 20, investing about $75.7 million; BitMine increased its holdings by 27,562 ETH during the same period, raising its total to 5,983,940 ETH. These are the latest disclosed weekly positions, not new purchases on September 23.

Driving Analysis: Bitcoin remains near an eight-month high, with institutional buying and inflows into crypto ETFs providing market support, but a new psychological resistance may form around $90,000. ETH continues to be supported by enterprise treasury demand, staking yields, and asset tokenization themes, but its 24-hour gains are temporarily lagging behind BTC.

U.S. Major Index Performance

• Dow Jones Industrial Average: Closed at 51,863.69, down 0.36%.
• S&P 500 Index: Closed at 7,764.64, essentially flat.
• NASDAQ Composite Index: Closed at 27,244.28, up 0.45%, setting a new closing high.

Tech Giants Dynamics

• NVIDIA (NVDA): $228.87, up 0.64%.
• Apple (AAPL): $339.75, up 0.21%.
• Microsoft (MSFT): $498.00, down 0.71%.
• Alphabet (GOOGL): $351.16, down 1.07%.
• Amazon (AMZN): $254.98, down 1.30%.
• Meta (META): $736.60, down 0.65%.
• Tesla (TSLA): $378.90, up 0.94%.

Performance Summary and Driving Analysis: Among the seven major tech stocks, three rose and four fell, with Tesla leading the gains and NVIDIA continuing its relative strength driven by AI demand. Apple's stock price briefly rose above the $5 trillion market cap threshold during the day but closed below it. Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, and Meta experienced profit-taking, although the semiconductor and memory chip sectors continue to support the NASDAQ's new highs.

Sector Movement Observation

Memory Chips: AI Demand and Price Increase Expectations Drive Sector Strength

• Representative Stocks: SanDisk up 6.81%; Micron Technology up 5.00%.
• Driving Factors: Rosenblatt gave SanDisk a "Buy" rating with a target price of $2,400, expecting AI infrastructure demand to tighten NAND flash supply. The market is also positioning for Micron's performance, anticipating continued improvement in HBM, DRAM, and data center storage demand.

Financial Sector: Spread and Profit Concerns Weigh on Large Banks

• Representative Stocks: JPMorgan down 3.40%; Wells Fargo down 3.92%.
• Driving Factors: The market is concerned that a high-interest-rate environment may slow loan demand, increase financing costs, and changes in the yield curve could compress bank profits, making financial stocks one of the main sectors dragging down the Dow.

# 3. In-Depth Analysis of U.S. Stocks

1. Apple (AAPL) ------ Intraday Breakthrough of $5 Trillion, Unable to Hold Threshold at Close

Event Overview: Apple rose 0.21% on September 22, closing at $339.75. The stock price briefly rose above the price needed to maintain a $5 trillion market cap but could not hold it. The market continues to assess the upgrade demand brought by the foldable iPhone Duo, AI version of Siri, and high-end product lineup.

Market Interpretation: Compared to other large tech companies, Apple has adopted a more restrained AI capital expenditure strategy, giving it a certain defensive attribute during tech sector volatility. However, the near $5 trillion valuation suggests that the market has already factored in a strong product upgrade cycle and profit margin expectations.

Investment Insight: Pay attention to the pre-order situation for the iPhone Duo, delivery cycles, AI functionality usage rates, and gross margin guidance. If the average selling price of high-end products rises but sales growth is limited, further valuation expansion may be constrained.

2. SanDisk (SNDK) ------ Strengthened AI Storage Demand, NAND Pricing Becomes Core Variable

Event Overview: SanDisk rose 6.81%, closing at $1,887.04. Rosenblatt initiated coverage with a "Buy" rating and a target price of $2,400.

Market Interpretation: Analysts expect that demand for high-performance storage from AI servers and data centers will keep NAND supply tight and push average prices up by more than 20% in the third quarter. SanDisk's technical collaboration with Kioxia also helps improve product performance and production costs.

Investment Insight: Future attention should be paid to NAND contract prices, shipment volumes, capital expenditures, and inventory changes. The stock price has already seen significant gains this year, and actual profit growth needs to continue to meet or exceed the market's revised expectations.

3. Micron Technology (MU) ------ Pre-Earnings Funds Positioning, HBM Realization Rate is Key

Event Overview: Micron Technology rose 5.00%, closing at $1,096.16. The company will announce its fiscal fourth-quarter results on September 30, with the market trading in advance on improved demand for AI data centers and storage chips.

Market Interpretation: Demand for HBM, DRAM, and data center storage has significantly raised profit expectations, but the current stock price already reflects strong price cycle and profit margin expansion assumptions. The market will differentiate between industry price increases and Micron's actual orders, shipments, and cash flow.

Investment Insight: Focus on HBM contract sizes, next fiscal year's revenue guidance, gross margins, and capital expenditures. If profit upgrades rely mainly on price rather than shipment growth, stock price volatility may amplify with changes in storage cycle expectations.

# 4. Market and Project Dynamics

1. Binance Invests in Circle: Binance announced a $100 million investment in USDC issuer Circle, further deepening cooperation in stablecoin liquidity, trading, and payment applications.
2. U.S. Opens Tokenized Stock Pilot: The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission granted temporary, conditional exemptions to eligible tokenized securities trading venues, allowing them to trade tokenized U.S. stocks through licensed automated market makers and liquidity pools.
3. BitMine Continues to Increase ETH Holdings: BitMine bought 27,562 ETH in the week ending September 20, raising its total holdings to 5,983,940 ETH, close to its target of acquiring 5% of Ethereum's supply.
4. Strategy Resumes BTC Purchases: Strategy bought 950 BTC from September 14 to 20, with an average price of about $79,670, raising its total holdings to 846,000 BTC.
5. European Central Bank Suggests Adjusting Stablecoin Reserve Rules: The European Central Bank and central banks of several EU countries suggested removing the requirement for stablecoin issuers to hold a fixed proportion of reserves in banks, instead emphasizing that reserve assets should be quickly convertible within one to five business days.

# 5. Today's Market Calendar

The following times are all in Beijing time (UTC+8).
Time
Country/Region
Event
Market Attention Level

|-------------|-----|--------------------|------| | September 23 16:00 | Eurozone | September Manufacturing, Services, and Composite PMI Preliminary | ⭐⭐⭐ | | September 23 16:30 | United Kingdom | September Manufacturing, Services, and Composite PMI Preliminary | ⭐⭐⭐ | | September 23 21:45 | United States | September S&P Global Manufacturing and Services PMI Preliminary | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | | September 23 22:05 | United States | Speech by Federal Reserve Vice Chair Barr | ⭐⭐⭐ | | September 23 22:30 | United States | EIA Crude Oil and Refined Products Inventory | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | | September 24 01:00 | United States | 5-Year Treasury Auction | ⭐⭐⭐ |

Key Event Forecast

• Trump - Xi Jinping Summit: Expected to be held on September 24 in Washington, focusing on trade truce, AI risk management, technology restrictions, and commodity procurement.
• U.S. Employment and Housing Data: Initial jobless claims will be released on September 24 at 20:30, and new home sales for August will be released at 22:00.
• Costco Earnings: Scheduled to be announced after U.S. stock market hours on September 24, focusing on membership fee income, same-store sales, and consumer spending trends.
• Micron Technology Earnings: Scheduled to be announced after U.S. stock market hours on September 30, with HBM orders, memory prices, and profit margin guidance being key points.

Institutional Views

UBS Global Wealth Management believes that the AI investment theme continues to be supported by the widespread application, commercialization progress, and growth in capital expenditures. Meanwhile, the market is raising its demands for profit realization, requiring more evidence from actual revenue, profits, and cash flow to support further valuation expansion of technology stocks. For memory chips, investors need to focus on assessing whether supply tightness and price increases can translate into sustainable shipment and profit growth.

Disclaimer: This content is for market information exchange only and does not constitute investment advice. Market prices can change at any time, please refer to real-time quotes at the time of trading.