Oracle (ORCL) rose 3.15% Monday and Nvidia (NVDA) edged up 0.05% as investors digested fresh headlines about the social media app TikTok and the broader U.S.–China relationship. President Trump signaled in a Truth Social post that the two countries had reached an agreement involving a “certain” company that young Americans “very much wanted to be saved,” a veiled reference to TikTok.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed to Reuters that the two sides have the “makings of a final deal,” while noting that Chinese negotiators are determined to preserve features of the app they view as important elements of soft power. The news comes as TikTok faces a Sept. 17 deadline to avoid being shut down in the U.S. unless parent company ByteDance sells a majority stake or the president extends the grace period. Trump has repeatedly granted the app reprieves and, despite a standing law banning it, has so far declined to enforce a full shutdown.
Trump’s concerns over TikTok go back to his first term, when his administration moved to block the app on national-security grounds, citing the potential for Chinese officials to harvest data, spread propaganda or influence U.S. users. Former President Joe Biden continued the push during his administration, ultimately signing bipartisan legislation to ban TikTok. Yet Trump, who has seen his own popularity on the platform surge, later reversed course, questioning the wisdom of a ban and allowing the app to remain online after briefly going dark when Biden left office and Trump returned to power.
Trump has said repeatedly that several deep-pocketed bidders are interested in acquiring TikTok. Oracle — long seen as the leading contender — gained more than 3% Monday on reports of progress toward a deal. Under the law banning the app, ByteDance would be allowed to retain no more than a 20% stake in the platform, meaning a U.S.-controlled buyer would have to take a large majority interest.
Like Nvidia, TikTok has become a political volleyball in the wider U.S.–China trade negotiations, which this week are being held in Europe. Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are expected to meet Friday to discuss the status of their trade pact and the future of the embattled social media app.
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