As investors await news from artificial intelligence powerhouse Nvidia on CEO Jensen Huang’s future with the company, stocks have been trading down this morning. Futures linked to the tech-heavy Nasdaq down 0.7% and those linked to the more traditional S&P 500 fell0.3%, while those linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose slightly. Stocks in Nvidia, which had fallen earlier in the week on news that CEO Huang was being investigated by the board of directors for an alleged affair with a woman who was allegedly a Chinese spy, have since recovered, helping to propel the major indices to a winning session on Wednesday.
In premarket trade, shares of Nvidia, the chipmaker driving the global AI boom, fell 8% after a report late yesterday said that Nvidia’s board is about to fire Huang, the company’s founder and CEO since 1993. That came after a report said Huang had an affair with an official at Nvidia not long ago.2 Memory chip manufacturers Micron and SK Hynix were the worst performers this morning, falling more than 5% each. Other chip companies are likewise losing currency. Recent declines of over 4% in Intel, Marvell Technology, and Lam Research contributed to a 3% decline in the iShares Semiconductor ETF.
Before the market opened, Broadcom and Advanced Micro Devices both moved higher. After closing at a record high yesterday, Apple shares were marginally higher in premarket trade. The stock’s 31% year-to-date gain puts it well ahead of the other Magnificent 7 in 2026 performance rankings. There was very little activity in other mega-cap tech equities this morning. Meanwhile, gold futures fell 1.5% to $3,940/oz, and WTI oil futures fell 0.8% to $85.80/bbl, their lowest levels since late August.
After reaching a high of $74,700 yesterday, Bitcoin is now trading at $72,800, close to its three-month low. Interest rates on a variety of consumer loans are heavily influenced by the yield on the 10-year Treasury, which increased from 4.99% at the previous close to 5.02%. Worries that the Federal Reserve may raise interest rates next month to rein in inflation that has been stubbornly above the central bank’s target have contributed to this week’s rise in the yield.
