Nvidia Stock Slides After Trump Suggests ‘Massive Increase’ of Tariffs on China

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang. The chip maker’s shares closed at a record high of $192.57 on Thursday. (Annabelle Chih/Bloomberg)

Key Points

• Nvidia stock falls following a record close of $192.57 on Thursday.
• A Truth Social post by President Donald Trump signals increased trade tensions between the U.S. and China.
• The president says his administration is now considering ‘massive increases’ of tariffs on Chinese products coming into the U.S.

Nvidia stock dropped Friday, reversing gains from earlier in the session after a Truth Social post by President Donald Trump signaled increased trade tensions between the U.S. and China.

Nvidia stock declined 1.7% to $189.30 Friday, after initially spending the morning inching toward another all-time closing high. Shares set a closing high of $192.57 on Thursday. The S&P 500 was falling 1.2% on Friday.

Trump said in a social media post Friday that China has become “very hostile” by sending letters to other countries in hopes of imposing export controls on “each and every element of production having to do with Rare Earths, and virtually anything else they can think of, even if it’s not manufactured in China.”

The president added that his administration is now considering “massive increases” of tariffs on Chinese products coming into the U.S.

The post follows a report that China was stepping up its effort to prevent imports of U.S. semiconductors. Customs officers have been carrying out stringent checks on chip shipments at major ports over the past few weeks, according to the Financial Times, which cited three people familiar with the matter.

Nvidia declined to comment when reached by Barron’s.

Nvidia stock initially started the day in the green. The Senate passed legislation on Thursday that would give U.S. companies priority access to advanced chips, ahead of their Chinese rivals.

Nvidia shares now on pace to close up 1% this week, according to Dow Jones Market Data, even as it dropped Monday after rival Advanced Micro Devices announced a long-term deal with OpenAI.

One factor driving the stock higher has been the news that Nvidia is helping to fund xAI, the AI start-up led by Tesla CEO Elon Musk. It also got a boost on Thursday when Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing reported a surge in revenue, which helped underline the continuing strength of the AI trade.

Write to George Glover at george.glover@dowjones.com and Angela Palumbo at angela.palumbo@dowjones.com