Saturday, 30 May 2026 · Weekend Edition · 10:00 London

Risk appetite ignores the Fed; AI and M&A lead.

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Signals

AI servers

Dell reported blowout Q1 results on booming AI server demand, sending its stock up 33% last session. CNBC and MarketWatch both flag the spillover to HPE and SMCI, which rallied in sympathy. The move confirms AI infrastructure spending is still accelerating, benefiting old-school hardware names.

DELL

Buy Dell Technologies — Two sources confirm blowout AI server demand sent DELL up 33% last session; the stock sits just 2% below its all-time high, momentum is strong but most of the immediate move is priced.

$420.9 +32.76%
HPE

Buy Hewlett Packard Enterprise — HPE rallied 13% in sympathy as AI server demand spills over; the stock is near a 52-week high, so further upside may need a new catalyst.

$43.04 +12.64%
SMCI

Buy Super Micro Computer — SMCI joined the server rally but is still 26% below its 52-week high, offering more potential recovery room.

$46.09 +11.60%

UK airlines

EasyJet has drawn takeover interest from private credit firm Castlelake, potentially removing another UK-listed company. Bloomberg and FT both report the approach, lifting EasyJet shares 8% this week. A bid premium could still materialize given the stock trades 33% below its 52-week high.

EZJ.L

Buy EasyJet — Bloomberg and FT confirm Castlelake's interest; EasyJet rose 8% this week on the rumor but is still 33% below its 52-week high, leaving room for a bid premium.

$398.0 +0.96%

Memory chips

WSJ argues memory chips have become more valuable than oil as AI data centers fuel insatiable demand for DRAM and NAND. Micron is highlighted as cheap despite a trillion-dollar end-market opportunity, especially if long-term contracts stabilize the sector. MU gained 5% last session and trades at just 9x forward earnings.

MU

Buy Micron Technology — WSJ argues memory chips are undervalued; MU is up 5% last session and trading at just 9x forward earnings, near all-time highs—AI demand could compress that multiple further.

$971.0 +5.14%

Aluminum premium

Rio Tinto and South32 offered Japanese clients record Q3 aluminum premiums as Middle East conflict tightens global supply, Bloomberg reports. The war squeeze pushes spot premiums to new highs, benefiting producers and aluminum prices. Rio Tinto stock is 13% below its 52-week high and trades at 12.7x forward earnings.

JJU

Buy Aluminum ETF — Record aluminum premiums signal supply tightness; the aluminum ETF JJU is 18% below its 52-week high, potentially undervalued.

$45.88 +0.00%
RIO

Buy Rio Tinto — Rio Tinto, a major aluminum producer, will benefit from higher premiums; the stock offers a 12.7x forward P/E and is 13% below its 52-week high.

$7968 +0.54%

Enterprise software

ServiceNow surged 14% last session, capping a 40% May rally as AI fears fade across software. MarketWatch reports the historic month leads an industry-wide relief rally. Despite the run, NOW is still 41% below its 52-week high, and peers CRM and ADBE also offer cheap valuations.

NOW

Buy ServiceNow — ServiceNow surged 14% last session in a historic month; despite the run, it's 41% below its 52-week high, suggesting more room if enterprise software re-rates.

$124.4 +14.38%
CRM

Buy Salesforce — Salesforce gained 8% last session in the software rally and trades cheaply at 12x forward earnings, but it's not a pure AI play like ServiceNow.

$191.1 +8.47%
ADBE

Buy Adobe — Adobe similarly cheap at 9.8x earnings, benefiting from broad sentiment shift; 39% below its 52-week high provides a margin of safety.

$259.2 +7.36%

Fed rate hike

Chicago Fed chief says a rate hike is on the table if inflation persists, Nikkei Asia reports. The hawkish comment pressures long-duration Treasuries and supports the dollar. TLT and IEF have been flat but could drop if rate hike odds rise.

DXY

Buy US Dollar Index — Dollar may strengthen if the market prices in a rate hike, but DXY is near recent highs limiting upside.

$98.94 +0.03%
TLT

Sell Long-duration Treasuries — Hawkish Fed comment pressures long-duration bonds; TLT is flat but could drop if rate hike expectations repriced.

$85.76 +0.02%
IEF

Sell 7-10 Year Treasuries — Intermediate-term Treasuries also at risk from higher rate expectations.

$94.65 +0.12%

Crypto divergence

CoinDesk notes bitcoin, ether, XRP, and dogecoin are drifting lower while the S&P 500 notches a nine-week winning streak, with ETF demand cooling. Only Hyperliquid's HYPE rallied, suggesting a rotation out of crypto. This divergence could widen if risk appetite narrows.

HYPE-USD

Buy Hyperliquid — Only major crypto to rally, showing relative strength amid sector-wide weakness.

BTC-USD

Sell Bitcoin — Crypto lags stocks as ETF demand cools; bitcoin drifting lower despite equity highs signals waning momentum.

ETH-USD

Sell Ether — Ether similarly underperforming as capital rotates to traditional assets.

Ag commodities

A 'Godzilla' El Nino threatens to disrupt agricultural production across India and Australia, Nikkei Asia reports. Wheat and corn supplies could be hit, potentially lifting prices. WEAT and CORN are down slightly last session but the weather risk is not yet priced.

WEAT

Buy Wheat ETF — Severe El Nino threatens wheat crops; WEAT is down 5% this week, offering a potential entry before damage materializes.

$23.38 -1.89%
CORN

Buy Corn ETF — Corn production also at risk from extreme weather; CORN is down 2% this week, reflecting no panic yet.

$17.93 -1.54%
MOO

Buy Agribusiness ETF — Broad agribusiness ETF could rally if crop prices spike, but its diversified exposure dilutes the weather catalyst.

$79.46 -1.05%

Most original take

Dan Gallagher · WSJ Business · 29 May 2026

AI Has Made Memory Chips More Valuable Than Oil

Memory semiconductors have become the new oil—the indispensable input for AI computing. Unlike previous commodity cycles, AI data centers need ever-larger caches of high-bandwidth memory, and the industry is shifting toward long-term supply agreements that could lift margins and reduce cyclicality. Yet Micron, Samsung and SK Hynix still trade at low multiples, presenting an asymmetric bet on the AI buildout that isn't priced in.

Read original ↗

Our view

Today's signals paint a market that is all-in on AI capex and deal-making, with the S&P 500 at yet another all-time high. DELL ripped 33% last session on AI server demand, pulling HPE and SMCI along for the ride. At the same time, EasyJet is in play. This is a market that wants to put money to work, not hedge.

The case against: the Chicago Fed chief just reminded us that a rate hike is still possible if inflation stays sticky. TLT barely budged, but the risk is that the market is underpricing the probability of a hawkish turn. If the next CPI print comes in hot, the AI narrative won't protect against a re-rating of duration.

What's not in the headlines: the dollar isn't rallying on the hawkish comment—DXY is flat. And crypto is peeling off despite equities at highs. The divergence is a warning that risk appetite is not uniform; the recovery is narrow, driven by a handful of AI winners.

The cleanest expression of today's mood is a barbell: own the AI hardware (DELL, MU) and buy some long-duration protection (TLT puts or short IEF) as a hedge against the rate scenario that the market is ignoring.

Last Weekend Edition's signals, today

From the Weekend Edition on 24 May 2026 — 2/4 signals moved in the predicted direction.

Today's scan: 188 articles considered · 10 surfaced · across 12 publishers

Generated Sat 30 May 2026 9:05am London · 4,536 views

Bloomberg Markets · CNBC Investing · CNBC Markets · CoinDesk · FT Alphaville · FT Companies · FT Lex · FT Markets · MarketWatch Top · Nikkei Asia · SCMP Business · The Information · WSJ Business · WSJ Markets

Next edition: Weekend Edition tomorrow at 10:00 London.

Methodology
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