It’s been lower than per week since Donald Trump gained his second presidential time period … however his impression on the markets is unmistakable …
We’ve seen property hovering throughout the board since final Tuesday, with traders scrambling to cost within the actuality of Trump’s America for 2025.
Tesla (Nasdaq: TSLA) shares have soared by a completely large 37% over the past week, and we’ve additionally seen a renewed spike of curiosity in crypto foreign money.
However what in regards to the market’s largest tech mega pattern?
How will synthetic intelligence (AI) investments fare beneath Trump’s new regime?
In July, I launched you to the Tech Demand Indicator (TDI).
The indicator measures the intent of companies to spend cash on know-how.
Extra importantly, it breaks down what particular know-how companies have spent cash on now and sooner or later.
It’s a strong gauge of simply the place enterprise sentiment is relative to know-how.
It could actually additionally assist us spot developments in cash flows associated to rising know-how, buyer expertise apps, knowledge facilities and the tech pattern of the final two years… synthetic intelligence (AI).
That approach, we are able to slender down funding prospects primarily based on the place cash goes.
Because the newest TDI numbers have been simply launched, I wished to focus on some delicate surprises within the knowledge.
Let’s break it down…
Total Sentiment Rises … Stays Constructive
Once I initially regarded on the TDI for the second quarter of 2024, it registered a 51.6 studying, suggesting that spending within the know-how sector above companies will proceed to develop.
Any studying over 50 signifies extra bullish spending tendencies.
That end result was buoyed by a rise in sentiment for AI know-how (i.e., AI chatbots, language fashions and facial recognition). The numbers confirmed that AI spending was pulling close to even with the demand for cloud and safety, manufacturing and software program/IT companies.
On the identical time, cloud infrastructure and data safety noticed slight dips.
Let’s see what the third-quarter numbers are exhibiting now:
The Q3 2024 TDI exhibits a slight improve in tech sentiment, rising from 51.6 to 51.9. It’s not a large soar, however a soar nonetheless.
Ranges are nonetheless properly beneath This autumn 2022’s file stage — spurred by the discharge of ChatGPT in November of that yr.
The largest shock wasn’t the flattening of tech spending sentiment however extra the place companies are spending their cash.
Let me present you…
Is AI Nonetheless the King of Tech?
What drove Q2’s soar in sentiment was the continued buzz round AI.
One quarter later … a swap.
After three straight quarters of constant sentiment will increase, the AI buzz has began to chill barely. The AI know-how part of the indicator declined 3.6 factors from 61.3 to 57.7.
However, info safety noticed a large improve of 4.3 factors and cloud infrastructure and companies climbed 1.4 factors.
This means a short-term shift in greenback precedence associated to tech spending.
It additionally signifies firms have began to comprehend the required infrastructure to implement large-scale AI initiatives isn’t there … therefore a shift to pouring extra money into cloud infrastructure.
For example this, take a look at the capital spending of cloud suppliers like Microsoft:
Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) is constantly growing AI companies to its Azure cloud platform.
Gross sales of AI companies inside Azure jumped 12 share factors from the earlier quarter to round $2.4 billion. It tells me Microsoft’s build-out of information facilities isn’t by probability however quite to additional develop infrastructure, permitting the corporate to offer extra AI companies within the cloud.
One other instance is Oracle Corp. (Nasdaq: ORCL):
Consensus estimates counsel Oracle will proceed to extend its capital expenditure alongside its income.
Like Microsoft, the logic is straightforward: Improve your cloud infrastructure to permit a rise in AI know-how and improve cloud gross sales.
Because of this there’s rising sentiment in cloud infrastructure and companies, in addition to info safety.
AI isn’t dying on the vine or something like that. Tech firms are simply starting to comprehend they want way more infrastructure in place earlier than AI can actually take off.
Consider it this manner: You might be constructing a city, and one of many first orders of enterprise is to put in water traces and electrical energy.
Do you solely set up sufficient water traces and electrical energy to deal with your present inhabitants, or do you add greater than you want with the intent of increasing your city sooner or later?
Savvy metropolis planners will inform you to do the latter … Higher to arrange now for what you may want sooner or later than get caught flat-footed.
AI is probably not topping the spending charts anymore, but it surely’s actually not useless… not by any means.
In actual fact, as firms construct out the required infrastructure, Chief Funding Strategist Adam O’Dell and I consider there are going to be unimaginable alternatives to spend money on the subsequent wave of AI tech.
And also you’ll be a few of the first to find out about it right here in Banyan Edge.
That’s all from me right this moment.
Till subsequent time…
Till subsequent time…
Secure buying and selling,
Matt Clark, CMSA®
Chief Analysis Analyst, Cash & Markets