Before the bell: U.S. government shutdown resolved

Nvidia CEO’s visit to TSMC sparks chip rally.

On Monday evening, eight dissenting Democratic senators helped the U.S. Senate pass a provisional budget with a 60–40 majority, effectively ending the government shutdown. The news lifted U.S. tech stocks across the board, with Palantir (+8.8%) and Alphabet (+4%) among the top gainers. A weekend visit by Nvidia’s CEO (+5.8%) to TSMC added fuel to the rally, as reports emerged that he requested additional production capacity — a positive signal ahead of Nvidia’s quarterly results due on November 19. Other chipmakers followed suit: Advanced Micro Devices (+4.5%) and Micron Technology (+6.5%) both climbed. Today, AMD will hold its investor day in New York. In the gold sector, Barrick Mining (+5.2%) advanced after posting strong quarterly results.

In Asia, markets are mixed: the Hang Seng Index is down 0.3%, and China’s CSI 300 has lost nearly 1%. Later today, Amsterdam-based payments specialist Adyen will hold its analyst day, while TKH, Kendrion, Onward Medical and Vodafone — as well as Beyond Meat — all report results.

Investing in nostalgia

It’s the year 2000. While investors in Japan are losing fortunes in what would later be known as the dot-com bubble, a young Belgian presses the power button on his very first PlayStation. For me, it was a life-changing moment — one that sparked fifteen years of loyalty to the PlayStation brand. For investors, that era was unforgettable too. My parents bought my PlayStation at the very peak of the bubble, when Sony’s shares traded around 6,000 yen. Three years later, they were worth barely 500 yen. Between 2003 and 2017, the stock went nowhere.How different things look today: Sony’s shares rose 5.3% overnight to 4,500 yen — their highest level since the day I switched on my first console. The company reported strong quarterly results and raised its profit outlook by 8%. Lower tariff pressure, steady demand for anime content, robust image-sensor sales, and the enduring popularity of PlayStation all helped.Sony today is much more than PlayStation. Its image-sensor and entertainment divisions are now key drivers of growth. The sensors are used in smartphones, while the music business continues to benefit from surging streaming revenues in emerging markets. It’s always gratifying to see a company from your youth successfully reinvent itself.

The departure of a legend

A touch of melancholy — that’s what I felt yesterday reading Warren Buffett’s Thanksgiving letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders. “I’m going quiet,” wrote the legendary investor, announcing that he would stop writing his famous annual letters and no longer chair Berkshire’s shareholder meetings. He will, however, continue to send out a yearly Thanksgiving note. At 95, Buffett says he still feels healthy and works five days a week. In the letter, he reflects on his own mortality — how doctors have saved his life three times — and on the extraordinary luck that he’s still around. It truly feels like the end of an era, following his announcement in May that he would step down as CEO. I’ll admit I was a little disappointed. I half-expected Buffett to mark the moment by making the largest charitable donation in human history. After all, he’s pledged to give away 99% of his wealth — nearly 150 billion dollar — to philanthropy. Instead, he “only” donated 1.35 billion dollar yesterday. The reason? Buffett says he’ll wait until Berkshire shareholders are more accustomed to his successor, Greg Abel, before transferring a major portion of his shares. That means the biggest donation in history is still to come. Even so, Buffett has already contributed between 60 and 62 billion dollar to charitable causes — a legacy few could match.

Did you know…

When Warren Buffett eventually donates 99% of his wealth to charity — as he has pledged — it will become the largest philanthropic gift in history. The current record (adjusted for inflation) belongs to Indian industrialist Jamsetji Tata, whose 1904 donation is estimated at 102.4 billion dollar. Buffett’s net worth today stands at nearly 150 billion dollar.