US Today.zip Nov 9: Oil Slide Lifts Stocks Over 2% as NVIDIA Falls on Board Probe

Wall Street bounced back hard on Monday, November 9. All three major indexes gained more than 2% as oil prices slid and chip stocks recovered part of last week's steep losses. One big name went the other way: NVIDIA fell 4.32% after its board opened an independent probe linked to CEO Jensen Huang. Washington and Beijing also bought themselves two more months of trade calm, and President Trump began questioning the midterm result he had said he would accept. Below is what happened, what the numbers mean, and what to watch next, starting with tonight's inflation report.

Key numbers from the session:

- Dow Jones Industrial Average: 52,389.75, up 2.15%

- S&P 500: 7,549.82, up 2.34%

- Nasdaq Composite: 25,253.14, up 2.74%

- Brent crude (January contract): $92.57 a barrel, down 5.85%

- NVIDIA: $178.67, down 4.32%

How much of last week's loss did the Nasdaq win back?

Reports tied Monday's rally to two forces. First, oil fell after President Trump said new strikes on Iran were unlikely, which eased fears about Middle East supply. Second, buyers returned to semiconductor stocks that had been hit hard last week, when worries about data center rules after the midterm elections triggered a broad tech sell-off.

The rebound looks large, but it helps to put it against last week's damage. The Nasdaq closed at 25,437.00 on October 30 and at 24,579.42 on November 6, a drop of 857.58 points. Monday's gain was about 673.7 points, so by our calculation the index recovered about 79% of that loss in a single session. It still sits about 184 points below the October 30 close, so this is a strong bounce rather than a full recovery.

Why did Brent fall 5.85% in one day?

Brent crude for January delivery settled at $92.57 a barrel, down $5.75 or 5.85%. U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for December fell 4.38% to $86.85. In a phone interview the day before, Trump said that if the two sides reach a deal, the chance that new strikes on Iran would be needed is very small. Markets read that as a lower risk of fresh supply disruptions in the Gulf.

The war premium was not the only story. Analysts also pointed to a softening spot market, and one bank estimated that global oil supply exceeded demand by about 1.4 million barrels a day in October. For context, Brent closed at $104.77 on November 2. Compared with Monday's settlement, that is a decline of about 11.6% in roughly a week. Cheaper oil matters beyond energy stocks: it lowers fuel costs for businesses and can take some pressure off inflation, which is why it often helps the broader market.

What exactly did the US and China extend?

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) extended all 178 current exclusions from its Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods through January 9, 2027. The list covers 164 earlier exclusions and 14 for certain solar manufacturing equipment. USTR also kept its Section 301 measures against China's maritime, logistics and shipbuilding sectors suspended until the same date. Section 301 is the U.S. trade law that lets Washington impose tariffs in response to unfair trade practices.

China moved in parallel. Its State Council Customs Tariff Commission extended the suspension of a 24% additional tariff on U.S. goods for two more months, to January 10, while keeping a separate 10% additional tariff in place. China's commerce ministry and customs agency also delayed tighter export controls on strategic materials such as rare earths to January 10. According to reports, Beijing also extended its pause on sanctions against five U.S. units of Korean shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean, including the Philly Shipyard, by two months.

The timing is widely seen as an effort to keep relations calm ahead of the APEC leaders' summit in Shenzhen on November 18 and 19, where a meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected. The catch is the short window. Two-month extensions mean the same deadlines return in early January, so the truce reduces near-term risk without settling the underlying disputes.

Why is Trump questioning the midterm result now?

On November 3, as Republican losses in the midterm elections became clear, Trump said he was willing to accept the result. Six days later, on Truth Social, he asked whether the election had been fair and questioned the volume of early votes and the reliability of voting machines. U.S. media noted that he offered no evidence for the claim.

Investors care because politics now runs into budget deadlines. With Democrats in control of both chambers of Congress, large new legislation becomes harder, and markets are watching a December 11 deadline to fund the federal government. A drawn-out fight over the election could make those talks harder, which is one more source of volatility for bonds and stocks.

Why did NVIDIA fall while other chip stocks rose?

NVIDIA closed at $178.67, down 4.32%, after trading as low as $170.24 during the session. In an email to staff, Jensen Huang acknowledged an affair with a businesswoman whom U.S. intelligence agencies believe is a Chinese spy. NVIDIA's board said it had opened an independent investigation into whether Huang was the target of a foreign intelligence effort. A company spokesperson said Huang is committed to continuing as CEO without interruption.

The contrast with the rest of the sector is the key detail. Most other chip stocks rallied on Monday, which suggests the selling in NVIDIA reflected uncertainty about leadership and governance rather than a change in demand for AI chips. The next thing to watch is the outcome of the board probe.

What should investors watch this week?

The October consumer price index (CPI) comes out at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time on Tuesday, November 10 (22:30 in Korea). Market forecasts call for a 0.3% monthly rise in headline prices and a 0.2% rise in core prices, which exclude food and energy. Cisco and Applied Materials report earnings after the U.S. close on Thursday, and the producer price index (PPI) follows on Friday morning, November 13 Eastern time.

Last Friday's jobs report came in stronger than expected. If inflation also runs hot, worries about higher interest rates could return just as investors are trying to rebuild confidence in tech. A softer reading would support the idea that Monday's rebound has room to continue.

Bottom line

Monday's rally was driven by cheaper oil and a chip rebound, and it recovered most, but not all, of the Nasdaq's loss from the prior week. NVIDIA showed that company-specific risk can override a strong market. The trade truce buys time until January, and tonight's CPI is the first real test of whether the bounce can last.

Sources: Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, China State Council Customs Tariff Commission, NVIDIA