Nvidia briefly reached a market cap of $1 trillion yesterday. Its share price has surged due to demand for its GPU chips in artificial intelligence applications. Perhaps the only chips more coveted right now are Pringles Salt & Vinegar. The combination of saltiness and acidity is difficult to beat and, in my opinion, is not properly reflected in the Pringles share price.

The lowdown

• 💻 Chipmaker Nvidia briefly reaches a $1 trillion valuation, following AI boom.

• 💊 Bankruptcy court rules that Purdue Pharma can shield Sackler family from opioid lawsuits.

• 🦤 Fidelity marks down the value of its Twitter stake for the second time.

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EG group debt burden shifts to Asda

The billionaire Issa brothers have finalized plans to merge the UK operations of convenience retailer EG Group with supermarket chain Asda, in a deal valued at £2.3 billion.

The move appears to be aimed at decreasing EG Group’s debt but apparently that’s just a side effect ($). Chair of both companies Stuart Rose emphasized the primary objective of the deal is expanding Asda’s operations.

Asda will borrow £770 million pounds from buyout group Apollo and raise an additional £1.1 billion through the sale and leaseback of some of its stores to fund the deal. Proceeds from the merger will then be used to repay EG Group's debts, as the firm is dealing with escalating interest rates on its billions of pounds worth of loans. Asda will now shoulder some of that burden.

The content we're consuming today

• Acquired podcast: Lockheed Martin.

• The Times: Three reforms could transform perceptions of the UK stock market.

• NY Times: Missteps and Miscalculations: Inside Fox’s Legal and Business Debacle ($).

Off-balance sheet items

• I know I am 36 years late, but I have just started reading the graphic novel Watchmen and it’s good. Apparently, it’s also a HBO series which I am only four years late for.

The bottom line