Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) has outperformed the market over the past 10 years by 1.59% on an annualized basis producing an average annual return of 15.09%. Currently, Linde has a market capitalization of $228.66 billion.
Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) reported record second-quarter sales and earnings per share, while expanding its sale-of-gas project backlog to a record $8.1 billion following a new U.S. electronics contract. The industrial-gases company also said it expects to start more than 20 projects during the remainder of
China, Russia, and Qatar export curbs have triggered a global helium shortage critical to chip fabrication, pushing prices higher and boosting suppliers like Linde PLC.
West Fraser’s near-term results are pressured by weak housing demand and softwood lumber duties, but its mill decisions now could shape the company’s earnings power in the next wood-products upturn.
The ceasefire may be precariously holding for now, but the strikes on Qatar earlier this year exposed a supply chain vulnerability few investors were watching: The AI boom depends on helium.
A helium bottleneck, exposed by geopolitical tensions around the Strait of Hormuz, could quietly but meaningfully dictate the pace, scalability, and resilience of the entire AI-driven semiconductor supply chain.
