Stocks markets tumbled on Wednesday on renewed signs that the global trade war could dent the financial results of some of the world’s largest technology companies.
Nvidia, the American chip giant, revealed that the U.S. government would restrict sales of some of its chips to China, marking the first major limits that President Trump’s administration has put on semiconductor sales abroad.
Nvidia dominates the market for chips used in building artificial intelligence systems and will now require a license sell A.I. chips to China.
In a regulatory filing on Tuesday, Nvidia said it would take a $5.5 billion hit because of piles of chips it would not be able to sell and orders it would not be able to fill. Shares of Nvidia, which exert great influence over market indexes because of the company’s size, was down about 6 percent in after-hours trading.
And in Europe, shares of ASML, the Dutch company whose machines are essential for manufacturing the most advanced semiconductors, sank more than 6 percent after it said that orders for its equipment had fallen short of expectations. Christophe Fouquet, the company’s chief executive, said the Trump administration’s tariffs have “increased uncertainty.”
The Stoxx Europe 600 index fell about 1 percent, with most markets in the region trading lower.
Stock market benchmarks in Japan fell 1 percent on Wednesday. Share prices were down nearly 2 percent in Hong Kong and 2 percent in Taiwan, a hub of global chip manufacturing.
The maker of most of the world’s advanced chips, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, which gets a lot of business from Nvidia, dropped 2.5 percent. Its South Korean chipmaker rivals, Samsung and SK Hynix, each fell over 3 percent.
In the United States, S&P 500 futures, which let investors bet on how the index might perform when trading begins in New York, were down more than 1 percent.
On Tuesday, the S&P 500 dipped slightly, and the technology-heavy Nasdaq also posted a small loss. Better-than-expected earnings from big banks and signs that the United States was making progress on a trade deal with Britain helped stabilize stocks on Tuesday.
Mr. Trump’s whipsawing tariff policies are still driving sentiment in global markets, especially in sectors facing the threat of more levies or potential reprieves.
A survey by Bank of America showed that global investors have cut their U.S. stock holdings by a record amount in the past two months, and that the potential for a recession spurred by Mr. Trump’s trade war poses a major risk to markets.
Tripp Mickle and Adam Satariano contributed reporting.
Danielle Kaye is a business reporter and a 2024 David Carr Fellow, a program for journalists early in their careers.
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