Intel $INTC ( ▲ 3.02% ) is on another leg higher and this time the fuel is not earnings.
It is Trump.
And a little Apple $AAPL ( ▼ 0.42% ) speculation sprinkled on top.
Shares of Intel rose again early Wednesday, pushing toward two-year highs, after the president made comments that reignited Wall Street chatter about whether Apple could become a major customer of Intel’s struggling contract chip-manufacturing business.
Trump Is Back to Victory Lapping Intel
In off-the-cuff comments to reporters Tuesday, Trump bragged about Intel’s rally since the US government invested in the company back in August.
“The stock went very up, and very high and we made tens of billions of dollars,” Trump said.
Then he added the line that lit up traders’ group chats:
“As soon as we went in, Apple went in, Nvidia went in, a lot of smart people went in. They followed us.”
Nvidia $NVDA ( ▼ 1.44% ) did in fact buy a $5 billion stake in Intel in September.
But the Apple part is the mystery.
Did Trump Just Hint at an Apple Intel Deal?
Trump’s comment suggested Apple “went in” after the government did.
The issue: it is not clear what that means.
Apple has not announced an investment in Intel, and there is no confirmed deal.
So the market is left with three options:
Trump was confused
Trump was doing Trump things and exaggerating
Trump accidentally hinted at something real
Either way, investors heard “Apple + Intel” in the same sentence and did what markets do best: front-run.
The Real Bull Case: Apple as Intel Foundry Customer
The comments line up with ongoing speculation that Apple could become a major customer for Intel’s next-gen chip manufacturing process called 18A.
Intel has spent billions building out 18A because it is basically the company’s best shot at reviving its foundry business.
Problem: Intel still has not landed a flagship external customer willing to commit serious volume to the new process.
That is where Apple comes in.
Keybanc analyst John Vinh wrote this week that he believes Apple $AAPL will be a key 18A customer, but again, there has been no official announcement.
Welcome to the New Market Structure
This entire story is basically a case study in how investors are trading policy and presidential vibes like they are financial indicators.
There is no signed Apple deal.
There is no press release.
There is no confirmed contract.
But Intel $INTC ( ▲ 3.02% ) keeps rising anyway because markets are treating Trump as a live signal for who wins and who loses.
Not exactly textbook free-market capitalism.
But for Intel shareholders, it is working.