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China plans to permit purchases of Nvidia’s H200 chips “as soon as this quarter,” per Bloomberg

Nvidia’s $54 billion opportunity to sell H200 AI chips to the world’s second-largest economy is reportedly close to getting the thumbs-up from Chinese officials.

Bloomberg reports that China is “preparing to allow local companies to buy the component from Nvidia for select commercial use,” with this step coming “as soon as this quarter.”

Shares are up marginally in premarket trading.

The H200 is the top-performing processor from Nvidia’s Hopper generation, which preceded Blackwell. Earlier this week, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang announced that Vera Rubin chips, the successor to Blackwell, are now in full production. While these H200s are getting lapped by newer generations, they’re still roughly 6x more powerful than H20 chips. Those are nerfed versions of Hopper chips that were previously the top AI offering Nvidia was allowed to sell into China, before US President Donald Trump announced back in December that Nvidia would be permitted to make H200 sales.

Reuters previously indicated that Nvidia has already received more than 2 million orders for H200 chips for 2026, plans to price these at about $27,000 apiece, and will have initial shipments there before the Lunar New Year holiday (February 17).

Separately, the outlet reports that the chip designer is demanding full payment up front from Chinese customers, along with no ability to modify or cancel orders, due to concerns about potential shifts in Beijing’s willingness to allow these shipments.

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J. Edward Moreno

Tilray rises after reporting earnings, revenue beat

Tilray’s biggest areas of revenue growth have been its alcohol business and its international market.

PORTUGAL-HEALTH-MEDICINE-PHARMACEUTICAL-DRUGS-CANNABIS

Tasha Matsumoto

The S&P 500 finishes flat but tech weighs down the Nasdaq 100

Investors were in risk-off mode ahead of tomorrow’s jobs report.

BISHOP'S STORTFORD, ENGLAND - JANUARY 25: Snowfall in the Essex countryside on January 25, 2021 in Bishop's Stortford, Essex, United Kingdom.

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Matt Phillips15h

AST SpaceMobile rises after favorable commentary from BofA

Mobile-services-from-space play — and retail investor favorite — AST SpaceMobile rose after receiving a target price upgrade from Bank of America analysts.

In a note published Thursday, BofA telecom services analysts lifted their price target for the stock to $100 from $85, while noting that the low-Earth orbit satellite industry — which supercharged stocks like Rocket Lab, Planet Labs, and AST in 2025 — is set to gain more attention this year:

“We expect the momentum to intensify in 2026 as providers like ASTS and Starlink jockey to offer full cellular service and capture subscribers. Debates will likely grow regarding Starlink’s plans to offer full cellular service and regulatory decisions on Ligado and EchoStar spectrum transactions are events to watch. Carrier partnerships could evolve and pricing and plan decisions should be clearer by year end as ASTS approaches full constellation operability.”

Still, they maintained their “neutral” rating on the stock, saying they “await progress on ASTS 1) fully producing and subsequently launching its BlueBird satellite constellation, 2) successfully operating the constellation, and 3) capturing subscribers and turning them into revenue paying subscribers before becoming more constructive on the story.”

The market has been less reticent: the money-losing company’s shares are up approximately 300% over the last year.

Morgan Stanley: Most Gen Zers and millennials in the US listen to about three hours of AI music a week

That’s enough AI music to last the run time of “Avatar.”

WNBA: JUN 23 Indiana Fever at Chicago Sky

Max Knoblauch17h

Bulls pour into Joby and Archer options as Trump’s push for record defense budget boosts eVTOL names

Options traders appear bullish on electric aircraft makers like Archer Aviation and Joby Aviation on Thursday, with large volumes boosting the stocks following President Trump’s call for a record $1.5 trillion US military budget for 2027.

Both companies, as well as newly public rival Beta Technologies, have sizable defense contracts. In July, Archer CEO Adam Goldstein told Sherwood News that he believes the company’s defense side will outpace its civil air taxi service for at least a decade.

Traders seem to believe him. As of 10:53 a.m. ET, about 31,000 Archer call options had exchanged hands, around 9,000 short of its 20-day average for a full day. Joby saw roughly 20,000 call options traded by the same time, eclipsing its 20-day average. For the most actively traded calls for Joby and Archer (C$17s expiring February 20 and C$9s expiring on Friday, respectively), volumes on the ask side are outstripping the bid or mid, indicating motivated buyers.

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