New York, Feb 11, 2026, 06:52 EST — Premarket
- Nvidia shares dropped roughly 0.7% in premarket trading following comments from the U.S. commerce chief about tight licensing restrictions on sales to China
- Washington confirmed it won’t stop U.S. companies from using Nvidia’s cutting-edge AI chips
- Investors are eyeing the February 25 results for clues on demand and policy risk
Nvidia shares slipped roughly 0.7% to $188.54 in premarket trading Wednesday, following comments from U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. He stated the chipmaker “must live with” strict licensing rules governing sales of its H200 AI chip to China. Reuters
The comments come just two weeks ahead of Nvidia’s Feb. 25 earnings report, a crucial time when shifts in China shipments could heavily influence forecasts. Nvidia plans to release CFO remarks shortly before the call, followed by a Q&A session with analysts and institutional investors.
Lutnick made it clear he wants to keep domestic supply off-limits. “We don’t want to do anything that stands in their way,” he said, referring to U.S. companies’ demand for Nvidia’s advanced chips. Traders took this as a sign that expansion by U.S. cloud and data-center clients will likely continue. Reuters
The language from China was more pointed. Lutnick cited terms crafted with the State Department and highlighted proposals like “Know-Your-Customer,” or KYC, rules that require sellers to verify buyers and their end-use, aiming to block sensitive chips from reaching military-connected groups. Reuters
Pressure is mounting on the networking side of AI data centers. On Tuesday, Cisco rolled out a new chip and router designed to accelerate data-center traffic. This move sets up a more direct challenge to Nvidia and Broadcom in a sector Cisco says is booming thanks to AI infrastructure spending.
Beyond semiconductors, Wall Street remains uncertain about how rapidly advancing AI tools will impact software profits—and what that means for the hardware cycle’s longevity. JPMorgan strategists, led by Dubravko Lakos-Bujas, pointed out in a note that “The market is pricing in worst-case AI disruption scenarios that are unlikely to materialize over the next three to six months.” Reuters
Retail investors have swung the other way. Net inflows into a U.S. tech-software ETF reached a record for a one-month rolling period by Monday’s close. Data from Vanda Research revealed Amazon saw the largest single-day net retail buying since August 2024 on Friday, surpassing Nvidia during that stretch.
Nvidia faces the risk that stricter regulations could drag out approvals, hike compliance expenses, or lead Chinese clients to hold off on orders until the rules settle. If buyers start favoring competitors’ gear or ramp up in-house development, that would only deepen concerns ahead of earnings.
The next major event for traders is Nvidia’s earnings and guidance update on Feb. 25. Until then, investors will be closely monitoring Washington for any new information on how the China license restrictions will be applied and what “KYC” procedures will actually involve.
