The US and Israel May Restart Strikes Against Iran as Early as Next Week
Following Trump's visit to China, he now faces a critical decision on Iran policy. According to the New York Times, his core advisors have drafted plans for military strikes. If Trump decides to break the current deadlock, the US military will launch another airstrike against Iran. However, Trump has yet to finalize the action plan, according to aides.
Two anonymous officials from the Middle East revealed that the U.S. and Israel are conducting the largest military preparations since the ceasefire, with a potential resumption of strikes against Iran as early as next week. U.S. officials told The New York Times that if Trump approves the resumption of military action, options for the U.S. include: intensified bombing of Iran’s military and infrastructure facilities; dispatching special forces deep underground to confiscate buried nuclear materials.
The Federal Reserve is about to enter the 'Wash era,' with Powell's final meeting minutes on the horizon.
After eight years at the helm of the Federal Reserve, Powell’s term as chairman ended on May 15. A council statement announced he will remain as acting chair until his successor, Kevin Wash, is officially sworn in. Nevertheless, Wash is expected to preside over his first interest rate decision meeting on June 16-17, inheriting a policy committee increasingly divided on the path of interest rates.
At 2 a.m. Thursday, the Federal Reserve will release the minutes of the April 28-29 FOMC meeting, which was Powell's last meeting as Fed chairman. Investors will scrutinize these minutes to gauge the intensity of internal discussions among the Fed’s hawkish faction and assess officials’ attitudes toward adjusting interest rates in June.
NVIDIA set to release earnings, AI rally faces test.
Next week, semiconductor giant $NVIDIA(NVDA.US)$ is scheduled to release its earnings report after market close on Wednesday. The market expects NVIDIA’s Q1 revenue to reach approximately $80 billion. Deutsche Bank forecasts key highlights, including the scale of the Blackwell/Rubin market opportunity and whether gross margins can stabilize around 75%.
In addition, Baidu Group-SW (09888.HK) 、 $Bilibili-W (09626.HK)$ 、 $Nio-SW (09866.HK)$ 、 NetEase-S (09999.HK) Chinese internet companies such as Baidu and NetEase, as well as $Walmart(WMT.US)$ American retail firms like Walmart will successively disclose their financial reports.
Samsung labor-management talks to resume on the 18th.
According to Yonhap News Agency, South Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok stated in a national address that if the strike at Samsung Electronics causes significant losses to the national economy, the government "will have no choice but to activate all available measures, including emergency adjustment authority." He also pointed out that the labor-management renegotiation scheduled for the 18th is "the last chance to prevent the strike," and neither side should underestimate the importance of this negotiation.
The Samsung National Union (NSEU) has announced plans to initiate an 18-day nationwide strike from May 21 to June 7. Key demands include abolishing the 50% cap on performance bonuses, securing a 7% increase in base salary, and allocating 15% of annual operating profits to employee bonus pools.
In addition, it has been reported that leveraged ETFs listed by Samsung and SK Hynix in South Korea may be launched as early as May 22.
The Google I/O 2026 Developer Conference will be held on the 19th and 20th.
The Google I/O 2026 Developer Conference will take place in California, USA, from May 19 to 20. Key market expectations for the event include: Google’s release of the more capable Gemini 3 model or even Gemini 4.0, as well as hardware such as AI glasses. Citi noted that another key focus of the conference will be whether AI capabilities can translate into real revenue.
1. New models in the Gemini 3 series, as the core of the I/O Conference, are expected to unveil a more capable Gemini 3 model. This will be a critical showcase of Google’s evolving AI "brain" and direct competition with rivals like OpenAI.
2. Hardware such as AI glasses, likely featuring the Gemini model, is expected to make an official appearance. This marks Google’s return to the AR field and exploration of new terminal forms combining AI with large models.
In addition to Google, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD.US) The AI Developer Day 2026 will be held in Shanghai on May 19, with CEO Su Zifeng in attendance; $Amazon(AMZN.US)$ The 2026 Annual General Meeting Online will be held at 00:00 Beijing Time on May 21.
China’s April housing price data for 70 cities, April economic data, and May Loan Prime Rate (LPR) quotations will be released.
On Monday, May 18, China will release a flurry of economic data for April, including housing prices across 70 cities, real estate development investment, industrial production, and retail sales. At 10 a.m., the State Council Information Office will hold a press conference on the operation of the national economy.
CICC predicts that industrial production resilience will still be supported by exports, with year-on-year industrial production growth potentially rising slightly to 5.8%. Growth in durable goods consumption is expected to slow, with retail sales growth likely declining marginally from 1.7% in March to around 1.4%.
Additionally, on May 20, China’s latest Loan Prime Rate (LPR) will be announced, with expectations that it will remain unchanged for the twelfth consecutive month. The one-year LPR will stay at 3.0%, and the five-year LPR at 3.5%.
SpaceX may release its prospectus as early as next Wednesday and could go public on June 12.
The Wall Street Journal, citing sources familiar with the matter, reported that SpaceX may release its prospectus as early as next Wednesday, commence its roadshow on June 4, and list on Nasdaq as early as June 12, with an expected fundraising size of up to USD 80 billion or more. SpaceX has notified shareholders via email that the company will execute a 5-for-1 stock split, adjusting the fair market value per share from USD 526.59 to approximately USD 105.32.
Russian President Putin will pay a state visit to China.
According to CCTV News, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that Russian President Vladimir Putin will pay a state visit to China from May 19 to 20. Meanwhile, the G7 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting will be held from May 18 to 19. Additionally, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takachi will visit South Korea from May 19 to 20.
Key earnings calendar for the new week.
Monday (May 18)
Keywords: China's April economic data; Baidu earnings report; Samsung Electronics labor-management negotiations; Yifitech's IPO
In terms of economic data, housing prices for 70 Chinese cities and April economic data will be released at 9:30 and 10:00 Beijing time, respectively.
09:30 National Bureau of Statistics releases the monthly report on residential sales prices in 70 large and medium-sized cities
10:00 Year-on-year growth of China's April total retail sales of consumer goods, year-on-year growth of China's April industrial output above designated size, press conference by the State Council Information Office on the operation of the national economy
22:00 US May NAHB Housing Market Index
Regarding IPOs, $Yifei Technology (06871.HK)$ will go public.
In terms of performance, Baidu Group-SW (09888.HK)、 iQIYI (IQ.US). will release earnings reports.
In terms of financial events, the labor and management of Samsung Electronics will initiate the second round of post-event mediation at 10:00 a.m. local time on the 18th; the G7 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting will be held.
Tuesday (May 19th)
Keywords: Putin's visit to China; U.S. weekly ADP employment data; Bilibili, Hesai earnings reports; UISEE Technologies, Top Numerical Control grey market trading
In terms of economic data, the U.S. ADP employment change for the week ending May 2nd will be released at 20:15 Beijing time.
20:15 U.S. ADP Employment Change for the Week Ending May 2nd (in ten thousands)
22:00 U.S. Pending Home Sales Index MoM for April
In terms of financial events, Russian President Putin will pay a state visit to China from May 19th to 20th; at 9:30 Beijing time, the Reserve Bank of Australia will release the minutes of its May monetary policy meeting. At 20:00, ECB Chief Economist Lane and Fed Governor Waller will deliver speeches at the ECB research conference.
In terms of new stocks, at 16:15 Beijing Time, $UISEE Technologies (01511.HK)$ 、 $Top Numerical Control (07688.HK)$ Grey market trading begins on the eve of the Hong Kong stock listing.
In terms of performance, $Hesai-W(02525.HK)$ 、 $Bilibili-W (09626.HK)$ 、 $贝壳-W(02423.HK)$ will release earnings reports.
Wednesday (May 20)
Keywords: China May LPR; NVIDIA earnings report; UISEE Technology, Top Numerical Control IPO
In terms of economic data, China's latest Loan Prime Rate (LPR) will be announced, which may remain unchanged for the twelfth consecutive month.
09:00 China’s one-year Loan Prime Rate (LPR) as of May 20
22:30 U.S. EIA crude oil inventory for the week ending May 15 (in million barrels)
In terms of financial events, at 7:00 Beijing time, Harker, a 2026 FOMC voter and President of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, will deliver a speech.
Regarding new stock listings, $UISEE Technologies (01511.HK)$ 、 $Top Numerical Control (07688.HK)$will be listed.
In terms of earnings performance, Hong Kong-listed ZTO Express-W (02057.HK) 、 $BOSS Zhipin-W (02076.HK)$、 $Sany International (00631.HK)$ Announced financial reports; U.S. stocks $GDS Holdings(GDS.US)$ 、 Lowe's Companies (LOW.US) 、 Analog Devices (ADI.US) 、 $ZIM Integrated Shipping (ZIM.US)$ Released financial reports before the U.S. stock market opened; $NVIDIA(NVDA.US)$ 、 $Intuit (INTU.US)$ Released earnings report after the US stock market closed.
Thursday (May 21)
Keywords: Federal Reserve monetary policy meeting minutes; Walmart, Nio, NetEase financial reports
In terms of economic data, the number of initial jobless claims in the U.S. for the week ending May 16 will be released.
20:30 U.S. Initial Jobless Claims for the Week Ending May 16 (in ten thousands)
21:45 U.S. S&P Global Manufacturing PMI Preliminary Estimate for May, U.S. S&P Global Services PMI Preliminary Estimate for May
In terms of economic events, at 2:00 AM Beijing Time, the Federal Reserve will release the minutes of its monetary policy meeting. China's refined oil products will enter a new round of price adjustment window.
In terms of performance, $Nio-SW (09866.HK)$ 、 NetEase-S (09999.HK) 、 Tongcheng Travel (00780.HK) will announce earnings; U.S. stocks $Walmart(WMT.US)$ will release earnings before the U.S. stock market opens; $Workday(WDAY.US)$ 、 Zoom Communications (ZM.US) 、 Ross Stores (ROST.US) is scheduled to release its earnings report after the US stock market closes.
In terms of new stock offerings, at 16:15 Beijing Time, Danno Pharmaceuticals-B (06872.HK) will commence grey market trading.
Friday (May 22nd)
Keywords: U.S. May University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index; Lenovo Group Earnings
In terms of economic data, at 22:00 Beijing Time, the final reading of the U.S. May University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index will be released.
In terms of earnings performance, Hong Kong-listed Lenovo Group (00992.HK) will release earnings reports.
Regarding IPOs, Danno Pharmaceuticals-B (06872.HK) has officially gone public.
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Wishing all fellow investors a successful week ahead!
Editor/KOKO