U.S. data-center spending won't fall much, but individual projects may face delays, relocations and higher costs.
Summary written by Upside AI from the original article. Read the source for full details.
Read the original on MarketWatch ↗
Keywords
data centersmidterm electionsAI investmentartificial intelligence
Open a keyword to see other news on the same topic.
Related tickers and likely impact
NVDA
• NeutralNvidia
Relevance: low
| Market | US stocks |
|---|---|
| Sector | Information Technology |
| Industry | Semiconductors |
| Market cap | $5.1T |
| Close on 11/03/2026 | 206.57 |
| Change that session | +2.23% |
Impact is scored by AI from the headline and may be wrong. It is not investment advice.
Related news
- Wall Street rethinks AI data center boom as Texas election raises new risks
- AI's $100B data-center bet is riding on midterm ballots
Sherwood News head of markets Luke Kawa outlines the US midterms, with 506 national contests including 435 House seats, 35 Senate races and 36 governorships. Democrats need to pick up three House seats and four Senate seats on net, with polls putting a House flip as almost certain and the Senate on a razor's edge. The discussion highlights 41 data center measures on ballots across 13 states, with at least $100 billion in data center investment at stake. These results are seen as a signal for future policy and for where and when major developers such as Alphabet, Anthropic or Microsoft can build out capacity. It also raises what could happen to Musk's business in Texas if Democrat Gina Hinojosa wins the governorship.
- The post-election rally masks a sharp split in the AI trade. Who stands to win?
Wall Street rallied Wednesday after Democrats won major midterm victories, but the broad gain masked a split in the AI trade as investors weighed whether the results would slow the data center buildout. Democrats who back data center restrictions captured governorships in Texas and Ohio, both major investment destinations, and according to Bernstein analysts, Texas alone accounts for about 25% of data center construction. Cloud 'incumbents' Amazon rose 7%, Microsoft more than 6% and Alphabet almost 4%, while smaller neoclouds fell, with CoreWeave down almost 10%, Iren down 11% and Nebius down about 6.5%. AI infrastructure suppliers such as Eaton (down 9%) and GE Vernova (down 10%) also fell, while Apple, squeezed by rising DRAM costs, jumped 6%. The article argues the election outcome may not be fully priced in, and that markets could be overreacting in both directions.
- Voters rebuff data centers in every ballot measure except one during the 2026 midterms
Of 41 local ballot measures in 10 states that would have restricted data center construction, voters sided against data centers in all but one, in Harwood, North Dakota, where the city voted against a charter amendment requiring extra review of industrial developments, including data centers. The result came alongside Democratic wins in Ohio, where Sherrod Brown ousted Republican Sen. Jon Husted and Amy Acton defeated Vivek Ramaswamy, and in Texas, where Gina Hinojosa unseated Gov. Greg Abbott. Ohio is also home to OpenAI's planned 8-gigawatt campus, developed by SoftBank and SB Energy with the U.S. Department of Energy, which could cost more than $500 billion in total, with Nvidia also backstopping the project. In a CNBC Voter Poll, 56% of voters called data centers a crucial or major factor in their decision, with Democrats ranking the issue higher than Republicans. Democrats, including Rep. Greg Casar, are calling for AI executives to testify under oath, as hyperscalers such as Alphabet, Amazon, Microsoft and Meta keep spending hundreds of billions of dollars a year on AI infrastructure.
- AI-linked stocks slide as Democrats win
Shares tied to AI fell as Democrats took control of both chambers of Congress in the 3 November midterm elections. SpaceX dropped 5%, Tesla lost 4%, CoreWeave fell 5%, Iren declined 4%, Nebius Group lost 1% and Nvidia slid 2.5%. Democrats also won in Texas, where Gina Hinojosa defeated incumbent Governor Greg Abbott and said she wants to immediately pause data-center construction in the state; Wells Fargo said Texas accounts for 27% of total planned data-center capacity (GW). Meanwhile, the DJIA rose 1,100 points (2%) and the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite each gained 1.2% after President Trump accepted the result. Musk spent at least $474 million on the midterms, including $224 million in Texas.
- Astera Labs Falls 4% Despite Blowout Guide as Democrat Sweep Threatens to “Put the Brakes on Growth”
Astera Labs (ALAB) fell 4% after Democrats won control of Congress, dragging AI data-center stocks lower on fears of tighter rules, even though third-quarter revenue rose 154% year over year to $584.9 million, above the $550.8 million analysts expected. The company guided fourth-quarter revenue to $730 million to $750 million, with a midpoint 13% above the $656 million consensus. The article estimates 2026 adjusted EPS of about $4.37 if Astera reaches that midpoint, versus $4.03 on the chart. Before the report, ALAB traded at 41x forward earnings, its lowest point in the past year and well below its 72x average; at the current price, it is about 38x. The author believes estimates should rise while the multiple shrinks, but notes that Astera's top three end customers made up about 86% of 2025 revenue, so a slowdown at even one of them could hit the company quickly.
Related markets
Latest news
- The economy brought Trump back to power. Now it's his downfall
Democrats won control of both the House and Senate in Tuesday's midterm elections, ending the Republican Party's trifecta of power in the federal government as voters focused on the cost of living. The CNBC Voter Poll found nearly nine out of 10 voters said the cost of living was a crucial or major factor, and about two out of three said Trump's policies worsened economic conditions. Gas averaged $4.15 a gallon on election day, the highest for any midterm or presidential election since at least 2000, and prices have surged about 37% over the past year amid the Middle East conflict. Zandi estimated that higher energy costs since the start of the Iran war have cost the average household nearly $1,230, while rising borrowing costs and expanded military services added more than $900. The University of Michigan's consumer sentiment survey fell in 2026 to its worst level in its seven-decade history.
- Apple cements its status as tech's biggest heavyweight with the stock's best day in over a year
Investors are turning to Apple as a safe haven. Meanwhile, AI infrastructure stocks are under pressure following the midterm election results.
- Qualcomm stock drops 5% on weak earnings forecast as memory shortage weighs on smartphone sales
Qualcomm's quarterly adjusted EPS of $2.17 and revenue of $10.32 billion slightly beat LSEG consensus, but the stock slid in extended trading. For the current quarter, Qualcomm forecast EPS of $2.15 to $2.35 and revenue of $10.4 billion to $11.2 billion, while analysts had expected $2.27 and $10.48 billion. Handset chip sales fell 26% to $5.14 billion as rising memory costs pushed up phone prices and hurt demand, though the company said it is seeing sequential growth. Automotive revenue soared 89% to $1.99 billion, IoT revenue rose 4% to $1.88 billion, and QTL licensing revenue dropped 7% to $1.3 billion. Qualcomm expects $5 billion in data center revenue in fiscal 2027, up from $650 million this quarter, and CEO Cristiano Amon said the constraint is supply, not demand.
- Google Tells Schools They Can Reject AI—But They'll Lose Search, Too
Google will disable its AI tools by default for K-12 student accounts unless administrators enable them, but schools that want to ban AI entirely will also lose access to Google Search. Administrators can switch Gemini, Gemini Notebook, Gemini in Classroom and Search on or off individually, but Google will not offer a version of Search without AI features, and from early 2027 schools that enable Search will get versions with AI Overviews, AI Mode or Guided Learning. Critics, including New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and former FTC chair Lina Khan, accuse Google of using its search dominance to push AI into schools, a debate that comes as New York City's one-year moratorium on student-facing generative AI covers nearly 600,000 students. The move also comes amid antitrust scrutiny after a federal court ruled in 2024 that Google unlawfully monopolized the U.S. search market.
- Diversified Energy Announces Third Quarter Dividend
Diversified Energy has declared a dividend of 29 cents per share for the three-month period ended September 30, 2026, to be paid in U.S. dollars. Shareholders who want sterling must submit a currency election form to Computershare Investor Services by March 1, 2027, and the company will announce the sterling value about two weeks before payment. The company states the announcement contains inside information under UK MAR.
- Why D-Wave Quantum Stock Led a Quantum Computing Crash in October
Shares of D-Wave Quantum (QBTS) fell 35.7% in October 2026, while the S&P 500 slipped 0.9% over the same period. Other quantum computing stocks also dropped sharply: IonQ fell 31.5%, Quantinuum 30.1%, and Rigetti Computing 28.5%. The selloff followed IonQ's agreement to buy cybersecurity firm Elisity for $1.3 billion in stock and its $2 billion equity offering, which raised concerns about dilution as many quantum companies burn cash. D-Wave brought in $12.4 million of revenue over the last four quarters, down 44.2% year over year, while the stock is still worth about $3.9 billion, roughly 316 times sales. The company holds about $500 million in net cash and little debt, so it faces no immediate pressure to raise funds. Its third-quarter results are due November 10, and the stock is down 60.4% year to date and 68.2% below its 52-week high.
Get the briefing on Telegram or Zalo
Join the Upside Telegram channel or Zalo group for the Vietnam stocks and gold briefing at 8:00 and 19:00 (Vietnam time) on trading days, plus a weekly wrap on Saturday morning.