Applied Materials, Globant And 3 Stocks To Watch Heading Into Friday - Benzinga

The semiconductor equipment sector is drawing significant attention ahead of Friday's market session, with Applied Materials leading the focus. As a global leader in semiconductor manufacturing equipm... Read original →

Applied Materials, as a leading semiconductor equipment provider, directly influences global chip production capacity expansion. In the current context of supply chain realignment, its technological advancement and order trends will reverberate across the upstream materials, midstream manufacturing, and downstream packaging sectors. Globant, though not a core hard tech player, plays a key role in AI software services, making it a strategic addition to tech stock portfolios. Policy-wise, tightening U.S. export controls on technology to China have increased procurement costs and accelerated supply chain diversification. Competitors like ASML and KLA may accelerate innovation to gain market share, while manufacturers in Taiwan, China and Hong Kong, China could leverage policy windows to scale production. Over the next 12–24 months, the push for domestic equipment substitution and AI-driven process upgrades will define market dynamics, with investors favoring firms that combine technological moats and global delivery capabilities.