Nvidia’s 4.34% Drop Puts Lutnick and Export Policy in Focus

By Elena Vasquez

Nvidia closed at $166.19 on November 12, 2026, down 4.34%, leaving its market value at $4.01 trillion. Senior White House officials reportedly discussed whether Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick should be pushed out over the Nvidia controversy. No decision has been made, and no departure has been announced.

The shares traded at $167.82 after hours at 7:59 p.m. ET, $1.63 above the close. Nvidia announced the leadership change the same day: Jensen Huang resigned as president, CEO and director, effective immediately. CFO Colette Kress became interim CEO while retaining the CFO role.

Huang cited being unfaithful in a November 8 memo. Nvidia’s board opened an independent review, and the report also cited alleged espionage concerns. Further Wall Street affairs likely pushed board members toward viewing Huang as a liability.

What has the White House confirmed?

Nvidia’s leadership change is the only signed and disclosed part of the episode. The discussion of Lutnick comes from unnamed people familiar with the matter.

A White House official pushed back, saying Trump “maintains complete confidence” in Lutnick. The official also called Lutnick a champion of Trump’s America First trade policy.

Why does Lutnick’s position matter to Nvidia?

The criticism centers on export enforcement. Since October 2025, the U.S. has added no companies to the Entity List, a trade blacklist that blocks sales without a license. That pause includes DeepSeek, CXMT and more than 100 other flagged companies.

Lutnick reportedly resisted adding Singapore-based Megaspeed to the list. Megaspeed has bought more than $4.8 billion of advanced Nvidia AI chips since June 2024. Rep. John Moolenaar said he was hearing that Trump had directed Megaspeed’s ban three times.

Could a tougher Commerce secretary cut Nvidia sales?

The Commerce secretary decides how much China-linked demand Nvidia can serve. A tougher replacement could cut off buyers such as Megaspeed, a private company with no verifiable financials.

The direct damage to Nvidia’s reported numbers looks limited. Fiscal third-quarter guidance stands at $108.0 billion, plus or minus 2%, and already excludes all Data Center computing revenue from China. Nvidia has not disclosed how much revenue flows through intermediaries.

What is the immediate earnings risk?

The larger near-term risk is that Nvidia has no permanent leader. The company reports Tuesday, November 17, at approximately 1:20 p.m. PT, with Kress serving as interim CEO and finance chief.

How is Congress preparing to scrutinize the case?

Senate Banking Chair Tim Scott asked Huang to testify on December 3 and Lutnick on December 10. Neither date has been scheduled as a hearing, and Lutnick has not publicly agreed.

Sen. Thom Tillis called the episode disqualifying, while Sen. John Kennedy supports a subpoena if needed. Sens. Jim Justice, Rick Scott and Mike Rounds urged Congress to wait for facts. House Foreign Affairs Chair Brian Mast still backs Lutnick.

Oversight likely gets tougher in January, when Sen. Elizabeth Warren takes over Senate Banking. Warren and Sen. Chris Coons asked the administration to keep all documents on Nvidia’s AI chip exports to China.

What do the fundamentals say about NVDA stock?

Shares have fallen 27.28% over one month and trade at 33 times earnings. Fiscal second-quarter revenue grew 105.8%, with no China Data Center computing sales included.

A stricter Commerce Department would mostly limit sales that Nvidia already excludes from its forecasts. Supply commitments of $279.0 billion point to demand from buyers outside China. By value, those commitments compare with more than two years of the current quarterly revenue guide.

Those figures support the argument that Nvidia’s fundamentals look stronger than the headlines suggest. Continued customer orders under interim leadership may matter more than who runs Commerce.

What would invalidate that case?

The case fails if November 17 revenue comes in below the bottom of the guidance range. It also fails if Commerce adds Megaspeed and similar non-Chinese buyers to the Entity List before the requested December 10 testimony.

Investors should watch whether the shares hold above Nvidia’s November 12 close of $166.19. A sustained move below that close would add pressure to the stock before the congressional testimony dates.