Nvidia Asian suppliers cautiously advance as Q1 earnings loom

Investing.com-- Shares of NVIDIA's (NASDAQ:NVDA) Asian suppliers rose on Wednesday, as investors sought more cues on the artificial intelligence industry from the firm’s hotly anticipated first quarter earnings. 

Some of Nvidia’s key suppliers- such as memory chip maker SK Hynix Inc (KS:000660) and contract chipmaker TSMC (TW:2330) (NYSE:TSM)- rose less than 2% each. Contract electronics maker Hon Hai Precision Industry Co Ltd (TW:2317) (Foxconn), which had last year inked a partnership with Nvidia, rose 2.4% in Taiwan trade. 

But other stocks were much more subdued. Japanese semiconductor testing equipment maker Advantest Corp. (TYO:6857), which is heavily exposed to Nvidia, fell 0.5%.

Memory chip giant Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (KS:005930), which has been racing to manufacture advanced memory chips for the AI industry, fell slightly. 

Broader Asian technology stocks, specifically chipmakers, were also largely subdued in anticipation of the Nvidia earnings. Nvidia is set to report its first quarter earnings after the U.S. market close on Wednesday. 

The firm, which is at the heart of a massive, AI-fueled spike in valuation over the past year, has come to be regarded as a bellwether for the tech industry, specifically due to its exposure to AI. 

Nvidia is expected to clock quarterly revenue of $24.65 billion and earnings of $5.59 per share according to Reuters estimates, with both figures set to increase exponentially from the same period last year. 

The firm, which currently makes the most advanced AI chips in the market, has benefited substantially from a massive push into AI investment by the tech industry. Its stock value surged over three-fold in the past year, with the gains also spilling over into the broader chipmaking sector.