Krispy Kreme, Texas Instruments, Toyota, Tencent and SAP

Doughnut chain Krispy Kreme (DNUT) appeared to be the latest addition to a new batch of meme stocks in the latest resurgence of the trend this week.

Shares jumped nearly 27% on Tuesday and were up close to another 27% in pre-market trading on Wednesday morning, with it mentioned in threads on the subreddit wallstreetbets, which became popular in the meme stock craze of 2021.

Department store Kohl's (KSS) was another entrant into this new class of meme stocks, also appearing in the subreddit threads on Tuesday. Shares in the beleaguered US retailer rocketed nearly 38% on Tuesday but hovered just below the flatline in pre-market trading on Wednesday morning.

This latest iteration of the meme stock craze began with online real estate service Opendoor Technologies (OPEN), with retail investors piling into the stock over the past week.

Opendoor rocketed 188% last week after activist investor Eric Jackson said he could see the company hitting $82 (£60.56) per share, posting his bull thesis for an Opendoor turnaround on X on 14 July. However, shares turned negative on Tuesday, closing the session more than 10% in the red.

Shares in Texas Instruments (TXN) were down 11.5% in pre-market trading on Wednesday, after the chipmaker's third quarter guidance appeared to disappoint against expectations.

The company posted a 16% rise in second quarter revenue to $4.45bn, in results released on Tuesday, and earnings per share (EPS) of $1.41 was also 16% higher than the same period last year.

For the third quarter, Texas Instruments said it expected revenue to be in the range of $4.45bn to $4.8bn and EPS of $1.36 and $1.60. According to Bloomberg, the average analyst estimate for revenue for $4.57bn, though some forecasts reached $4.8bn.

Stocks: Create your watchlist and portfolio

In prepared remarks for the company's earnings call, CEO Haviv Ilan said: “We continue to see two distinct dynamics at play. First, tariffs and geopolitics are disrupting and reshaping global supply chains. As we work closely with our customers, we are leveraging our global manufacturing capabilities to support their needs. We have flexibility and are prepared to navigate as things evolve.”

“Second, the semiconductor cycle is playing out,” he added. “Cyclical recovery is continuing, while customer inventories remain at low levels. In times like this, it is important to have capacity and inventory, and we are well positioned.”

Shares in Tokyo-listed Toyota (7203.T) surged more than 14% on Wednesday, after it was announced that Japan had reached a trade deal with the US.

The deal sees a 15% tariff imposed on Japan's exports to the US, which is lower than the 25% levy that US president Donald Trump had threatened in a letter earlier this month.

It was later confirmed that this 15% tariff rate also applied to Japan's cars, which is below the 25% universal rate applied by the US on foreign-made cars.

Read more: Stocks that are trending today

Announcing the deal on Truth Social, Trump said: “We just completed a massive Deal with Japan, perhaps the largest Deal ever made. Japan will invest, at my direction, $550 Billion Dollars into the United States, which will receive 90% of the Profits.”

“This Deal will create Hundreds of Thousands of Jobs — There has never been anything like it. Perhaps most importantly, Japan will open their Country to Trade including Cars and Trucks, Rice and certain other Agricultural Products, and other things,” he said.

Hong Kong-listed stocks also rose on Wednesday amid an easing of trade tensions between the US and China.

The Hang Seng index (^HSI) rose 1.6% on Wednesday, with key risers including tech firms Tencent (0700.HK) and Baidu (9888.HK), which gained 4% and 6% respectively.

US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent announced on Tuesday that that a third round of trade talks with China is now scheduled and will commence next week in Sweden. The goal is to delay an August deadline that has threatened to increase tariffs between the world's two largest economies.

The confirmation of a meeting — following talks in Geneva and then London earlier this year — comes ahead of an Aug. 12 deadline when a pause on tariffs between China and the US is scheduled to expire.

In Europe, shares in SAP (SAP.DE) fell more than 3% on Wednesday, after the German software company reported mixed second quarter results.

In results released late on Tuesday, SAP posted total revenue of €9.03bn (£7.82bn) for the second quarter, which was up 9% and operating profit of €2.57bn was up 32% year-on-year.

Ben Barringer, head of technology research at Quilter Cheviot, said: “All in all, SAP’s results are a bit plain vanilla as the company continues to underscore its credentials as an established AI leader. Revenues beat expectations with the transition to cloud services continuing to drive things forward.”

“The only slight disappointment with these results is that there was no raise to the guidance, especially given the beating of expectations this quarter,” he said. “The company has a history of conservatism, but given it is looking to appeal more and more to a US investor base, this approach may need to loosen over time.

Barringer added: “Clearly there is still some tariff uncertainty overhanging, but SAP has shown it has the products and the engagement from customers to come through this and remain one of the leaders in AI integration for customers.”

Read more:

Download the Yahoo Finance app, available for Apple and Android.