Nvidia dropped 2% while US stock indices achieved weekly gains

The S&P 500 fell 30.73 points, or 0.40%, to 7,561.67 on Friday, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 229.82 points, or 0.91%, to close at 25,136.27. Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 50.46 points, or 0.10%, to 52,347.55, according to market data.

Nvidia shares dropped 2% on Friday, recording their sixth consecutive week of declines. The drop followed the resignation of Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang on Thursday, after revelations of extramarital affairs involving a businesswoman suspected by the United States of spying for China.

The Financial Times reported that Nvidia board approached Arm Holdings Chief Executive Officer Rene Haas as a potential successor. Uncertainty over leadership raised investor concerns about the stability of artificial intelligence technology stocks, according to Ameriprise Financial chief market strategist Anthony Saglimbene.

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index fell 3.4% on Friday, led by Advanced Micro Devices dropping 8.8% and Broadcom falling 4.8%. Data center firms IREN and Applied Digital also ended lower, losing 6.7% and 5.8% respectively, ahead of next week expected public offering by Anthropic.

On the economic front, the US Labor Department reported that producer prices rose 6.5% year over year in October. San Francisco Federal Reserve President Mary Daly and Boston Federal Reserve President Susan Collins both indicated support for tighter monetary policy amid elevated inflation.

Despite Friday losses, major indices posted weekly gains. For the week, the S&P 500 gained 2.51%, the Nasdaq rose 2.27%, and the Dow climbed 2.07%, while total trading volume on US exchanges reached 16.38 billion shares.

What do these terms mean?

S&P 500: A stock market index that tracks the performance of 500 of the largest publicly traded companies in the United States.

Nasdaq Composite: A stock market index that includes thousands of companies listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange, heavily weighted toward technology firms.

Dow Jones Industrial Average: A price-weighted stock market index that measures the performance of 30 prominent blue-chip companies in the United States.

Philadelphia Semiconductor Index: A benchmark index designed to track the performance of companies involved in the design, distribution, manufacture, and sale of semiconductors.

Producer Price Index: An economic indicator measuring the average changes in selling prices received by domestic producers for their output over time.