US Makes $2 Billion Quantum Bet as Nvidia’s Real Problem Comes Into Focus

What to Watch Before the US Stock Market Opens on May 21, 2026

1) Oil and yields rise again

Reuters reported that Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei had instructed officials not to ship enriched uranium overseas. A day earlier, President Donald Trump said the US and Iran were in the “final stage” of an agreement to end the war, fueling hopes for a ceasefire. Iran’s leadership, however, still showed no willingness to compromise on the nuclear issue.

International oil prices rebounded, and bond yields also moved higher on renewed inflation concerns. The rise in long-term Treasury yields was limited after the Philadelphia Fed’s May manufacturing index plunged to minus 0.4 from 26.7, slipping into contraction territory. The data raised fresh questions about the breadth of the manufacturing recovery.

2) US government unveils major quantum push

The US government has decided to provide a combined $2 billion in subsidies and equity investments to nine quantum computing companies, including IBM, GlobalFoundries, D-Wave Quantum and Rigetti Computing. The move signals an effort to elevate quantum technology, after AI, into a national strategic industry.

IBM, which is set to receive the largest award at $1 billion in subsidies, plans to work with the Commerce Department to establish Anderon, the first pure-play quantum chip foundry in the US. GlobalFoundries will receive a $375 million subsidy and an equity investment of less than 1%.

3) Why Nvidia shares fell despite blockbuster earnings

Nvidia shares opened lower despite the company’s strong earnings report a day earlier. Investor reaction remained muted even with Nvidia’s dominance in GPUs, the long-term growth visibility created by heavy spending from Big Tech, and optimism around its next-generation Vera Rubin platform.

The market view is shifting as AI moves into the inference stage, with investors paying closer attention to infrastructure names beyond Nvidia across the value chain, including CPUs, memory and networking. Nvidia said it would increase share repurchases to $80 billion this year and raise its quarterly dividend to 25 cents from 1 cent.

4) SpaceX kicks off IPO at $1.75 trillion; Anthropic targets first quarterly profit

Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which is scheduled to list on Nasdaq on June 12, has filed a 308-page registration statement. The company is seeking to raise as much as $75 billion at a valuation of $1.75 trillion and put its total addressable market at $28.5 trillion.

First-quarter revenue rose 15% from a year earlier to $4.69 billion, helped by Starlink. Losses widened sharply, however, as the company continued to spend heavily on projects including its Starship heavy-lift rocket. Anthropic, meanwhile, said it expects to post its first quarterly profit in the second quarter.

5) US consumers grow more price-sensitive

Walmart shares fell sharply after the retailer’s full-year earnings-per-share guidance missed market expectations. Walmart Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey said the boost from tax refunds was fading because of higher oil prices and that consumers could face greater pressure.

E.l.f. Beauty, which also reported strong earnings, said rising gasoline prices were increasing the burden on consumers. The company also said it planned to roll back part of its tariff-related price increases.

Nan-sae Bin, New York correspondent, Hankyung, binthere@hankyung.com