US Stocks Lower As Nvidia Weighs On Nasdaq

New York: Wall Street stocks fell early Wednesday despite strong US retail sales data, with the Nasdaq decisively lower after Nvidia disclosed a large financial hit from American export restrictions to China.

US retail sales grew 1.4 percent last month to $734.9 billion. The figure, which was slightly above analyst expectations, was powered by the auto sector as consumers rushed to buy goods before new tariffs kicked in.

Shares of Nvidia slumped nearly six percent as the chip company disclosed that it expected a $5.5 billion hit this quarter due to a new US licensing requirement on the primary chip it can legally sell in China.

About 15 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.3 percent at 40,236.71.

The broad-based S&P 500 shed 0.9 percent to 5,346.96, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index tumbled 1.7 percent to 16,546.37.

US markets have stabilized this week after upheaval in the Treasury market last week. Investors are hoping that President Trump's decision to pull back from some tariffs will open the door to trade deals.

Among individual companies, United Airlines surged 5.2 percent after reporting better than expected profits despite what it called a "challenging macroeconomic environment."

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