Podcast
Semiconductor Surge
Will Simpson and Greg Wise
April 24, 2026
What’s driving the chip boom, what could stop it, and what it means for your portfolio.
Markets were a bit of a mixed bag this week, with a pretty clear split depending on where your attention was. The TSX slipped -1.3%, dragged down by weakness in materials, while the S&P managed a modest +0.5% and the Nasdaq led the way at +1.4% as tech continued to recover. Outside the U.S., it was a tougher week. Europe was down -3.5%, Japan off -3.2%, and EAFE falling -2.7%.
What’s interesting is how similar this all feels to last year. Investors spent a good chunk of time worrying about a major macro shock, only to eventually move on and refocus on what’s actually driving growth. This time around it’s the Iran conflict and higher oil prices, but equities have continued to look through it, much like they did with trade tensions in the past. Underneath it all, the same theme keeps showing up. The underlying economy continues to hold up better than expected, supporting growth and earnings as the headlines keep pointing to reasons things should be slowing down.
One area worth highlighting this week is semiconductors, which continued to be a bright spot within the tech recovery. The sector has had a remarkable April. SOXX, the iShares Semiconductor ETF, posted one of its strongest monthly gains in its 25-year history, driven by a combination of improving risk sentiment and continued momentum around AI infrastructure spending. The story here hasn’t changed. Demand for chips powering AI data centres, electric vehicles, and defence systems remains structurally strong, and the market is increasingly pricing that in even as macro uncertainty lingers in the background.
This week was a good real-world illustration of the thesis. When sentiment improves, this sector tends to move fast and lead the recovery. That volatility cuts both ways, but for those with the right time horizon, the underlying growth story continues to look compelling.
As always, if you have any questions about your portfolio or know someone who could benefit from a second opinion, we are always happy to help.
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