Markets whiplashed as Huang quits Nvidia

World Nvidia shares plunged 13 per cent at the start of trading in New York before moderating. Nvidia logo and decreasing stock graph are seen in this illustration taken, Jan 27, 2025. (Photo: REUTERS/Dado Ruvic) 13 Nov 2026 05:54AM (Updated: 13 Nov 2026 06:28AM) NEW YORK: Jensen Huang's resignation as CEO of Nvidia whiplashed markets on Thursday (Nov 12), hitting the AI giant but lifting some of its rivals as investors tried to game out the ripple effects from the shakeup.Jensen, co-founder of the world's leading designer of the chips that power AI models, stepped down in the face of a board revolt following revelations he had two extra-marital affairs, including with a woman accused of spying for China.Chief financial officer Colette Kress will serve as interim CEO while keeping her finance role, and the board will consider internal and external candidates for a permanent replacement.Shares in Nvidia plunged 13 per cent at the start of trading in New York before moderating. The stock, a component in both the Dow and Nasdaq indices, finished down 4.3 per cent.The tech-focused Nasdaq had a rollercoaster day, pushing into positive territory in the middle of the session before finishing 0.4 per cent lower."Something that's going on here that's kind of helping to mitigate the losses is that investors are recalibrating who benefits if Nvidia suffers," said Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare, who pointed to strength in Broadcom and AMD, both of which gained more than five per cent."That's kind of helped soften the blow of Nvidia's problems," O'Hare said.Other tech companies were mixed. AI infrastructure companies Nebius and CoreWeave slumped 16.8 per cent and 6.9 per cent respectively while tech giants Amazon, Microsoft and Google parent Alphabet all rose.Some analysts said Huang's departure won't affect short-term AI projects already in the works. But FHN Financial's Chris Low noted that the shakeup at Nvidia comes on the heels of US elections earlier this month that showcased public hostility to data centres."A slowdown in AI development would be a positive thing from an inflation and interest rate perspective," Low said. "The buildout is a primary driver of demand-side inflation pressures, after all, and the loss of Jensen Huang might not mean the end of AI development, but it could slow its progress."In other markets, oil prices rose after US President Donald Trump signalled less interest in a peace deal with Iran that markets have been seeing as more likely."We don't need a deal with Iran. Those days have long since passed. We've got their money, Hundreds of Billions of Dollars, and we've got their Strait!" Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.European stocks ended higher.Frankfurt's blue-chip DAX reached earlier in the session a record high above 27,000 points thanks to healthy corporate earnings and recent optimism about the artificial intelligence boom.