By Benjamin Pimentel
The tech sector edged higher slightly early Tuesday powered by
gains from Apple Inc. and Advanced Micro Devices Inc.
The Nasdaq Composite Index (RIXF) rose 0.4% to 2,027 in early
trading, while the Morgan Stanley High Tech 35 Index (MSH) was up
0.6%.
Apple (AAPL) was up 1.4%, while AMD (AMD) was ahead 1.6%.
The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) gained 0.5%.
The chip sector got a boost early Tuesday from Barclays Capital
which said in a note that data from Asia shows "strong potential
upside of shipments in the third quarter of 2009 for most vendors
driven by strength in computing and consumer, followed by
handsets."
In another note, Barclays analyst Tim Luke also cited the
recently announced plan of Advanced Technology Investment Company,
or ATIC, to acquire the Singapore-based foundry, Chartered
Semiconductor. ATIC is AMD's partner in the recent spin off of
Global Foundries.
Luke said in a note that the planned acquisition "may be viewed
as a strategic positive both for AMD and Global Foundries."
"While cross licensing and legal uncertainties relating to Intel
and other aspects may linger, ATIC has underlined its commitment to
the foundry business and expanded GF's potential customer list
while AMD may have a path toward lower losses and deconsolidating
Global Foundries," he added.
However, other major tech players were in the red, including IBM
Corp. (IBM), Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) and eBay Inc. (EBAY).
Shares of MEMC Eletronic Materials Inc. (WFR) were down more
than 3% after the company cut its quarterly revenue forecast.