U.S. Optical Communications Stocks Surge Up to 72% in 4 Trading Days on China Import Ban Plan

According to Reuters, U.S. optical communications companies' stocks surged on August 4 (local time) following reports that the Trump administration is preparing to ban imports of Chinese optical transceivers. Lumentum Holdings jumped 8.92% to $849.47, bringing its 4-trading-day gain to 41.02%. Coherent rose 12.35%, up 45.79% over four sessions. Applied Optoelectronics surged 19.44%, posting a 72.02% gain in four trading days. Siena and Cisco Systems also gained 5.21% and 5.08%, respectively.

The Federal Communications Commission is drafting legislation to ban new Chinese optical transceiver imports to protect critical AI infrastructure, with potential announcement by year-end. Optical transceivers convert electrical signals to optical signals and vice versa in fiber-optic networks, serving as key components in AI data centers.