Japan Stocks Poised to Catch Up With Global AI Rally as Yen Steadies

ASML Holding won broader customer commitments for its roughly $400 million High-NA EUV machines, even as its U.S. shares fell about 1.8% to $1,713.41 in Thursday morning trading. Intel is already using High-NA in volume production on selected chip layers, Samsung plans to bring the technology into DRAM production in 2028, and TSMC targets advanced chip production from 2030. ASML says its EXE:5200B can print features 1.7 times smaller than its current NXE systems in a single exposure, potentially sparing customers costly manufacturing steps. The catch is price: chipmakers need enough output and yield gains to earn back the cost of each machine, and ASML needs those gains to turn early commitments into lasting demand. At $1,713.41, the shares sit 35.5% above the roughly $1,260 GF Value estimate, a premium that puts pressure on High-NA to deliver on the factory floor.

Citi analyst Atif Malik raised his price target on Micron Technology to $1,300 from $1,150 while keeping a buy rating, citing better than expected DRAM pricing and continued supply tightness heading into fiscal Q4. Malik also lifted his August and November quarter estimates and said he expects the stock to rally into SEMICON West as equipment makers highlight DRAM shortages. On Micron's fiscal Q3 call, CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said DRAM and NAND industry demand continues to significantly exceed industry supply and that tight conditions should persist beyond calendar 2027, with fiscal Q3 DRAM prices up in the low 60s percentage range and NAND prices up in the mid-80s percentage range. Micron has signed 16 Strategic Customer Agreements, typically five-year take-or-pay deals running through calendar 2030, and for 14 of the 16 the cumulative minimum-price revenue is approximately $100 billion, backed by $22 billion in cash deposits and letters of credit. The stock trades around $1,075.72, up 277.14% year to date, at a forward PE of 7, while consensus fiscal 2027 EPS has climbed to $156.53 from $117.86 ninety days ago, leaving Citi's $1,300 target below the Street average of $1,515.

Renishaw reported record full-year results for the year to June, with revenue up 14% to £815.8 million and adjusted pretax profit rising 32% to a record £168 million, sending its shares up around 3%. Adjusted operating profit climbed 36% to £152.9 million, lifting the margin to 18.7% from 15.7%, while adjusted earnings per share increased 30% to 179.5p and statutory pretax profit rose 27% to £150 million despite £18 million of redundancy and other one-off costs. Fourth-quarter revenue reached a record £244.2 million, up 28% year on year, and the order book continued to grow. Position Measurement was the standout division, with revenue jumping 26% to £260.9 million and adjusted operating profit up 53% to £71.5 million as its margin expanded to 27.4% from 22.5% on demand for optical encoders used in semiconductor manufacturing equipment, while Specialised Technologies grew revenue 43% to £107.5 million and swung from a £9.9 million adjusted operating loss to a £4.7 million profit. Industrial Metrology, still the largest part of the group, grew 4% as weakness in some traditional industrial markets offset demand for newer metrology systems and software. Renishaw increased its regular dividend by 5% to 82p per share and added a special 70p interim dividend, with cash and deposits rising to £291 million.