TSMC said it’ll invest as much as $56 billion this year to expand its chipmaking capacity, a heftier-than-anticipated amount that signalled its confidence in the strength of the AI boom. It also upped its revenue growth forecast for the year to almost 30%, quicker than consensus. The news boosted TSMC and other AI plays, too. Key supplier ASML saw its shares jump 8% to a record in Europe, sending its market value above $500 billion. 

Gold, silver, copper, and tin all hit new record highs as uncertainty about the Federal Reserve’s leadership and interest rates added new shine to the market’s safe havens and hard assets in general. Put simply, they’ve all been hot commodities lately. Industrial metals have been boosted by demand from AI data centers, grid upgrades, and electrification projects. Meanwhile, precious metals have been lifted by central bank buying, a weaker US dollar, and general investor fear about government debt. 

Alphabet’s market value topped $4 trillion, making it just the fourth company to cross that milestone. The move followed news that the Google parent had struck a deal to help power Apple’s AI technology, including its Siri assistant. The $4 trillion club is a small and shifting one. Last year, Nvidia, Microsoft, and Apple all cleared the bar for entry, but both Microsoft and Apple have dropped back below it. That leaves Alphabet and Nvidia as its only members. 

The UK economy expanded by a stronger-than-expected 0.3% in November, easing at least some recession worries. Economists were forecasting a rise of just 0.1% for the latest month, after a 0.1% slip in October. The country’s growth was hit hard last year by a cyber attack that slowed production for carmaker Jaguar Land Rover. But the automaker was up and revving in November, contributing to overall growth with a 25.5% manufacturing rebound.