Ether, XRP flat as chip stocks steady on Samsung's 250-fold profit surge

Crypto's largest tokens were close to unchanged on Thursday as the semiconductor selloff that has driven markets for two weeks showed its first real sign of easing.

Ether traded at about $1,905 and Bitcoin at $64,100, both flat on the day, with XRP at $1.07, Solana at $74, BNB at $572 and TRON at 33 cents. Hyperliquid's HYPE slipped to $54. Volumes were modest, with roughly $28 billion changing hands in bitcoin and $10 billion in ether.

Electronics giant Samsung said chip profit rose more than 250-fold on AI memory shortages, and the Kospi swung between a 6% gain and a 2% loss before settling, after a stretch that took the index down more than 40% from its June peak.

Samsung's reaction is the tell on how high the bar has become. Profit up 250-fold moved the shares 2%. SK Hynix reported profit up 557% on Wednesday and fell 17%. Results are not the problem, expectations are.

US earnings split overnight. Microsoft gained nearly 9% in extended trading on its fastest cloud growth in four years, while Meta fell 8% on a weak revenue forecast. Nasdaq 100 futures rose 1% after the index entered a technical correction on Wednesday.

The weekly picture across crypto is deeper than Thursday's calm suggests. HYPE is down 8% over seven sessions, the worst of the majors. XRP has lost 6%, Solana 5%, Dogecoin 4% to $0.07, and Bitcoin 3%. BNB is the only major holding a weekly gain, up marginally.

What stands out is how little of the equity turmoil has reached crypto. Bitcoin tracked semiconductor stocks through most of July, rising and falling with the chip trade.

It held through last Thursday's $797 billion drop in U.S. megacap technology, held through Korea's record two-day decline midweek, and is flat again now. Such softness across the alts looks more like thinning liquidity than a response to anything in equities.