Despite the economic downturn, the top 25 global technology companies managed to gain more than $2 trillion in valuation during a challenging second quarter (Q2) this year. Overall, the top 25 tech companies gained a whopping $4.5 trillion in the first half (H1) of 2023, reveals GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company. Graphics chip major Nvidia gained over 50 percent in market cap in Q2 and almost 200 percent since January.

“Nvidia continued to spearhead the surge. The company, which witnessed over 90 percent increase in market value in Q1 2023, had another impressive quarter, recording a 52 percent increase in market value in Q2 2023,” said Gracio Benher, business fundamentals analyst at GlobalData. Other companies which had seen impressive gains in stock values in Q2 2023 include Meta (33.8 percent), Oracle (28.9 percent), and Amazon (26.4 percent). They recorded overall gains of 130 percent, 45 percent and 56.1 percent, respectively, since the beginning of 2023.

The prediction of a global recession and the Federal Reserve (Fed) interest-rate-induced spending squeeze saw tech stocks experiencing a tipsy-topsy journey during most part of H1 2023. However, it did not deter the top companies gain record valuations. Meta has gained the approval of investors after the company’s efficiency initiatives showed a positive impact on the latest quarter results, with other factors being improved monetization from reel content and enhanced ad targeting.

At the other extreme, Tencent, Qualcomm and Cisco witnessed their market value eroding during Q2 2023. Tencent, which saw its market value recovering in Q1 2023, slipped back to Q4 2022 level by the end of Q2 2023, impacted by a slowdown in the Chinese economy, heavy sell-off by Prosus, one of its major stakeholders, and fear among investor community about potential sanctions that restrict exporting of select chips into China. Weak demand for smartphones and tablets impacted Qualcomm’s top-line performance in recent quarters, impacting its market value. “Looking ahead, tech companies offering hardware and software solutions for AI tools and cloud-based solutions are likely to witness market rally for their stocks,” said Benher.