Tech Weekly: Tech Stocks Rebound After Earnings Report and Lighter Economic Data

This week's tech sector performance

US stocks advanced amid key economic data releases, with tech leading gains after Micron Technology's (NASDAQ:MU) upbeat forecasts eased AI sector pressures.

The S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) rose 0.02 percent weekly, closing Friday at 6,834.50.

However, tech stock losses earlier in the week kept gains in check. The Nasdaq Composite (INDEXNASDAQ:.IXIC) lost 0.10 percent for the week to close at 23,307.62 on Friday.

3 tech stocks moving markets this week

1. Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU)

Micron Technology reported its Q1 FY2026 earnings on Thursday (December 18, showing outstanding results driven by surging high-bandwidth memory (HBM) sales for AI data centers

Revenue reached US$13.64 billion, a 93 percent increase from last year, and higher than the company’s September revenue projection of US$12.8 billion. Adjusted EPS were US$4.78, which beat estimates of US$3.95 EPS. The company generated strong free cash flow and declared a US$0.115 per share dividend payable January 14, 2026.

Looking ahead, Micron guided Q2 FY2026 adjusted profit to US$8.42 per share, higher than Wall Street's US$4.78 consensus, due to continued AI boom momentum.

Investors responded to the results by sending its stock up 10 percent post-earnings. Momentum carried into Friday’s trading session, spilling over into other tech stocks, which have come under pressure in recent weeks over lofty valuations and funding concerns. The company ended the week 0.58 percent higher.

2. Trump Media & Technology Group (NASDAQ:DJT)

Trump Media & Technology rose nearly 30 percent before Thursday’s opening bell after the company announced it will merge with fusion power company, TAE Technologies, in an all-stock deal reportedly valued at more than US$6 billion.

Devin Nunes, the CEO of Trump Media CEO, former Congressman Devin Nunes, will be co-CEO of the new company with current TAE Technologies CEO Michl Binderbauer.

TAE is a private company with backing from Alphabet and other companies. The merger is slated to create one of the first publicly traded nuclear fusion companies. “We’re taking a big step forward toward a revolutionary technology that will cement America’s global energy dominance for generations,“ Nunes said in a prepared statement.

Shares of Trump Media & Technology closed the week with gains of 39.53 percent.

3. Oracle (NYSE:ORCL)

Oracle shares dropped 5.4 percent on Wednesday after a Financial Times report claimed data center investor Blue Owl Capital pulled out of a US$10 billion financing round for one of the AI data centers Oracle is constructing for OpenAI in Michigan.

Talks reportedly stalled due to concerns over project delays, tougher debt terms, Oracle’s rising debt load and lease arrangements, per sources cited by the FT.

Oracle disputed the report’s implications, stating Michigan negotiations are “on schedule” without Blue Owl. The company said that its project development partner, Related Digital, has chosen “the best equity partner from a competitive group of options, which in this instance was not Blue Owl.”

Still, the company finished the week with its stock price ahead by 2.18 percent as tech stakes staged an end of year comeback.

Top tech news of the week

• Ottawa introduced the Canadian Quantum Champions Program, pledging up to C$23 million each to Xanadu Quantum Technologies, Anyon Systems, Photonic and Nord Quantique, four Canadian companies developing fault-tolerant quantum computers.

• The Trump administration launched Tech Force, in collaboration with tech partners like Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL), Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) and OpenAI. The new program will recruit engineers to work on AI inside federal agencies.

• United Parcel Service is reportedly spending US$120 million for 400 robots to unload trucks as part of a US$9 billion automation plan.

• The Business Development Bank of Canada announced a C$4 billion investment in a new defense platform, noting that cultural opposition to defense investment is beginning to shift.

• BlackBerry (TSX:BB) shares fell over 10 percent on Friday, despite beating Q4 revenue estimates, due to ongoing concerns about the growth of its QNX division. The company also raised the low end of its fiscal 2026 revenue forecast, driven by strong cybersecurity software demand amid increased spending to combat cyber attacks.

• Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) shares rose premarket on December 17 on reports that the company was in talks to invest more than US$10 billion in OpenAI. Part of the deal would include OpenAI using Amazon’s Trainium AI chips.

Tech ETF performance

Tech exchange-traded funds (ETFs) track baskets of major tech stocks, meaning their performance helps investors gauge the overall performance of the niches they cover.

This week, the iShares Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SOXX) declined by 0.94 percent, while the Invesco PHLX Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SOXQ) saw a loss of 0.66 percent.

The VanEck Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SMH) also decreased by 0.61 percent.

Tech news to watch next week

Markets will be closed mid-week next week for Christmas and Boxing Day in Canada, with low trading volume likely keeping things calm.

Watch for year-end selling in tech stocks, a potential rotation into safer sectors and light data like factory orders and home sales reports.

Any comments on future interest rates could move markets a bit, but expect mostly flat trading unless big news like policy changes breaks through.