Intel Jumps 10% on Apple US Chip Deal, Lifting Semiconductors

Intel shares jumped about 10% on Thursday after President Donald Trump said the chipmaker had agreed a deal with Apple to design and build chips in the United States — a single headline that reignited the entire semiconductor trade and helped tech-heavy indices shrug off the previous day’s hawkish-Fed sell-off.

The Intel Apple chip deal, in brief

Trump made the announcement in a Truth Social post, saying Apple would work with Intel to design and build its chips in America. He offered little beyond that: no confirmed terms, scale or timeline. Apple itself stayed quiet, and its shares rose less than 1% — a notable contrast with Intel’s double-digit pop.

The asymmetry makes sense. For Apple, sourcing some chips from a domestic foundry is incremental. For Intel, a marquee customer is the missing piece of a multi-year turnaround.

Why Apple matters as a customer

• Apple is one of the world’s largest chip buyers, so even a partial design-and-build relationship is meaningful volume.
• Landing Apple would validate Intel’s push to win outside customers for its contract-manufacturing (foundry) business — the part of the company that has struggled most.
• The deal also fits Washington’s reshoring agenda, giving a politically prominent example of advanced chips being built on US soil.

A double-digit move on top of a huge run

Intel rose roughly 9% in premarket trading and changed hands up about 10% during the session. That extends an extraordinary stretch for a stock long viewed as a laggard: Intel is up around 464% over the past 12 months, lifting its market value to roughly $608.7 billion.

Chief executive Lip-Bu Tan, who took the helm early last year, has rebuilt Wall Street’s interest by drawing investment from Nvidia and the Trump administration and by moving Intel’s most advanced 18A manufacturing process into production. The Apple headline is the latest catalyst layered onto that recovery story.

The rally spread quickly across chips

The move did not stay contained to Intel. As the session went on, the gains broadened — and grew — across the sector:

• Memory led the follow-through: Sandisk climbed about 11% and Micron Technology roughly 8% by midday, as memory names rode the improved sentiment.
• Marvell Technology rallied as much as ~12%, while chip-equipment makers Lam Research and Applied Materials each rose about 6%. Western Digital gained in the 5-6% range.
• Nvidia added around 3%, a smaller percentage move but a large one in dollar terms given its size.
• The iShares Semiconductor ETF jumped more than 6%, and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index pushed to a record — now up roughly 90% so far this year.

Concentrated chip moves move whole indices

Because the biggest semiconductor stocks carry heavy weightings in technology benchmarks, a sector-wide pop showed up fast at the index level:

• The Nasdaq Composite climbed nearly 2%.
• The S&P 500 added about 1%.
• The Dow Jones Industrial Average managed only about 72 points, or 0.14% — it carries far less chip exposure and holds no Intel.

That spread is the story in itself. It is the same dynamic that cut the other way earlier in June, when a sharp reversal in chip stocks dragged the Nasdaq lower. For anyone watching index CFDs such as the Nasdaq 100 or S&P 500, it is a reminder that a handful of semiconductor names can set the tone for an entire benchmark on a given day.

The hawkish-Fed backdrop

Thursday’s rally also doubled as a rebound. A day earlier, Wall Street had sold off after the first FOMC meeting chaired by Kevin Warsh proved more hawkish than markets expected: the updated “dot plot” showed nine of 18 officials now see higher interest rates in 2026, a shift away from the rate cuts traders had penciled in. The Intel headline handed the market a clear, single-stock reason to look past that overhang — at least for a session.

What traders are watching from here

With terms still unconfirmed, the durability of the move is an open question rather than a settled outcome. A few things worth following, framed as observation rather than advice:

• Detail and scale: how much volume the Apple work actually represents, and over what timeline.
• Foundry economics: whether marquee customers translate into the margins Intel’s manufacturing business needs.
• Macro overhang: a hawkish Fed and a firmer dollar can weigh on richly valued growth and chip stocks, even when company-specific news is positive.

The broader point is that semiconductors remain the swing factor for US equity sentiment — capable of rescuing a wobbling market one day and sinking it the next.

Key takeaways

• Intel jumped about 10% after Trump said it had agreed a deal with Apple to design and build chips in the US; details were thin and Apple shares rose less than 1%.
• The headline reignited a sector-wide rally: Sandisk about 11%, Marvell up to ~12%, Micron roughly 8%, with Lam Research and Applied Materials around 6%.
• The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index hit a record and the iShares Semiconductor ETF rose more than 6%; the gauge is up roughly 90% year to date.
• Chip strength lifted the Nasdaq nearly 2% and the S&P 500 about 1%, while the Dow added just 0.14% on lighter chip exposure.
• The bounce came right after a hawkish, Warsh-led Fed meeting, where nine of 18 officials signaled higher rates in 2026.

FAQ

What did Trump actually announce about Intel and Apple?

In a Truth Social post, Trump said Apple had agreed to work with Intel to design and build chips in the United States. He did not provide terms, scale or a timeline, and Apple did not publicly elaborate, leaving several specifics of the partnership unconfirmed.

How much did Intel stock move?

Intel rose roughly 9% in premarket trading and traded up about 10% during the session. The move extends a remarkable run that has left the stock up around 464% over the past 12 months, with a market value near $608.7 billion.

Which other chip stocks rallied?

Memory and equipment names led the follow-through. By midday, Sandisk was up about 11%, Marvell as much as ~12%, and Micron roughly 8%, while Lam Research and Applied Materials each gained about 6% and Nvidia added around 3%.

Why did the Nasdaq rise more than the Dow?

Semiconductor stocks carry much larger weightings in tech-heavy benchmarks like the Nasdaq than in the price-weighted Dow, which holds no Intel. So a chip-led rally lifts the Nasdaq and S&P 500 far more than the Dow, which gained just 0.14%.

*Risk disclaimer: CFDs are complex instruments and carry a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage; most retail accounts lose money. This article is educational market commentary, not financial advice.*