US Pre-Market: CPI Data Fuel Inflation Concerns; US Stock Futures Mixed; Optical Communication Leader Lumentum Rises Over 5% Pre-Market

Unusual Market Movement

Major index futures diverged as optical communications and storage stocks perform strongly

TradingKey - Prior to Friday's U.S. market open, the three major U.S. stock index futures showed mixed performance. Dow futures fell 0.02% to 48,404 points; S&P 500 futures rose 0.07% to 6,868 points; Nasdaq futures fell 0.15% to 25,289 points.

In terms of individual stocks, Lumentum ( LITE) rose over 5.52%; CoreWeave ( CRWV) rose over 6% pre-market; storage stocks generally rose, with Micron ( MU) up 0.26%, SanDisk ( SNDK) up nearly 3%; TSMC ( TSM) rose over 2.46%; popular China concept stocks mostly moved higher, with Li Auto ( LI) rose over 4%, Baidu ( BIDU ), NIO ( NIO) rose over 2%.

Middle East situation remains volatile, oil prices oscillate at high levels

Geopolitical developments in the Middle East remain the core variable driving international oil price trends. Although the market had previously gradually priced in expectations of a ceasefire in the U.S.-Iran conflict, recent updates indicate that negotiation progress remains uncertain, and the geopolitical risk premium has not fully faded. Overall, oil prices continue to oscillate within a high range near $100 per barrel.

Crypto market rises across the board

Within 24 hours, Bitcoin ( BTC) rose 1.57%, Ethereum ( ETH) rose 1.61%, currently trading at $2,215, XRP ( XRP) rose 0.89%, currently trading at $1.34, Binance Coin ( BNB) rose 0.14%.

Market Headlines

U.S. March CPI Rose 3.3% Year-on-Year

Data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday showed that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 3.3% year-on-year in March, with a month-on-month increase of 0.9%, both in line with market expectations, as the situation in the Middle East pushed up energy costs. Energy prices surged 10.9%, serving as a core driver of overall inflation, while gasoline price gains set a record high since 1967.

Optical Communication Demand Explodes; Lumentum’s 2028 Capacity to Be Sold Out Within Two Quarters

Demand for optical communication components from leading U.S. cloud service providers is seeing explosive growth, with orders already scheduled through 2028. CEO Michael Hurlston stated in an interview in Tokyo: "Capital expenditure intensity from hyperscalers continues to rise, and demand shows no sign of peaking. Our capacity gap is widening rapidly; based on current trends, our entire 2028 capacity will be fully booked within two quarters."

SpaceX's Texas Chip Packaging Plant Enters Equipment Installation Phase

According to people familiar with the matter, Elon Musk’s SpaceX has started installing core equipment at its chip packaging facility in Bastrop, Texas, aiming for mass production by the end of 2026. Although the project has faced slight delays, the company still maintains year-end production as a core goal.

Anthropic Reaches Multi-Year Compute Leasing Agreement with CoreWeave

AI startup Anthropic announced a multi-year data center leasing agreement with compute service provider CoreWeave to secure enough AI computing power to support its Claude series of large language models and meet surging demand for AI services.

TSMC Q1 Revenue Up 35% YoY as AI Demand Drives Earnings Beat

TSMC disclosed its first-quarter results on Friday, with revenue reaching NT$1.134 trillion (approximately $35.71 billion), a 35% year-on-year surge. Driven by the explosion in chip demand for AI applications, performance exceeded market expectations. TSMC's revenue in the same period last year was NT$839.3 billion, marking a significant acceleration in growth.

Li Auto Q1 Deliveries Exceed Expectations, BEVs Account for Nearly 60%

Li Auto delivered 41,000 vehicles in March, up 55% month-on-month and 11.9% year-on-year. Cumulative Q1 deliveries reached 95,100 units, surpassing the upper end of its 90,000-unit guidance. Monthly deliveries of the Li i6 BEV model exceeded 24,000 units, accounting for nearly 60% of the month's total sales, signaling the success of its pure electric transformation strategy.

Tesla China Refutes Low-Price SUV Rumors, Denies Shanghai Plant Production Plans

Tesla China officials clarified market rumors, stating that reports of the company "secretly developing a small electric SUV measuring 4.28 meters in length and priced below the Model 3, with plans to produce it at the Shanghai plant" are untrue. The rumors have been officially denied.

Key Data/Events Preview

US March Unadjusted CPI YoY

US March Seasonally Adjusted CPI MoM

US March Seasonally Adjusted Core CPI MoM

US March Unadjusted Core CPI YoY

US April 1-Year Inflation Expectations (Preliminary)

US April University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index (Preliminary)