AMD Stock Surges Following Trump’s Middle East Diplomacy—Chipmakers Ride Geopolitical Tailwinds

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) shares are rallying as analysts upgrade price targets—apparently nothing boosts semiconductor valuations like a presidential handshake tour. The market’s betting that backroom deals in Riyadh or Doha might magically unclog global supply chains (or at least distract from pesky fundamentals).

Wall Street’s latest love affair with chip stocks proves yet again that tech investing is 10% silicon and 90% narrative. Meanwhile, value investors quietly add another zero to their Nvidia position statements.

AMD has been getting positive outlooks since Trump’s trip

The agreement, which was announced during a Saudi-U.S. Investment Forum in Riyadh on May 13, 2025, is worth $10 billion and will see the deployment of 500 megawatts of AI hardware infrastructure over five years.  

AMD will reportedly supply thousands of next-generation AI chips to support Humain’s goal of establishing Saudi Arabia as a global AI hub behind America. The deal covers hardware purchases as well as a partnership to develop a next-generation AI cloud computing platform, as noted by Keith Strier, AMD’s senior vice president of global AI markets. 

AMD’s partnership with Humain has caused analysts at HSBC Global Research to upgrade Advanced Micro Devices Inc.’s stock to a hold rating on Tuesday, citing the potential for future upside thanks to the new deal as well as the company’s upcoming artificial intelligence chips.

Analysts at Rosenblatt Securities think the deal is a “positive” one for AMD and have said it should help the company fare better against its rival Nvidia Corp, which also has a deal with Humain, to “partially offset the impact from the recent U.S. export restrictions to China.” 

AMD previously said it expects U.S. export restrictions on its MI308 chips to lead to a revenue loss of $1.5 billion for 2025. 

Nvidia also got a boost with the Humain deal 

Like AMD, Nvidia also benefited from Donald Trump’s Middle East trip in May 2025 as it announced a partnership with Humain during the Saudi-U.S. Investment Forum in Riyadh. 

The deal will reportedly see Nvidia sell hundreds of thousands of AI chips in Saudi Arabia, with a first tranche of 18,000 of its newest “Blackwell” chips going to Humain.

The partnership caused Nvidia’s stock to surge 5.6% on May 13, as investors expressed enthusiasm for the deal. 

Both Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) and Nvidia have been victims of significant financial and strategic setbacks due to U.S. export controls that made it difficult to sell advanced AI chips to China, a major market for both companies. 

Nvidia has revealed that it took a $5.5 billion charge in the first quarter tied to exporting its H20 graphics processing units to China and other countries. The government will also require a license to ship the chips there and other destinations, according to the company.

The Nvidia chip was designed specifically for China used to meet U.S. export restrictions barring the sale of advanced artificial intelligence processors during former President Joe Biden’s administration. The chips totaled an estimated $12 billion to $15 billion in revenue last year. 

Advanced Micro Devices echoed similar concerns and reportedly expects a $800 million hit from curbs on its MI308 products.

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