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NVIDIA stock fell on Thursday as chip stocks came under pressure from a wider market move tied to the Iran conflict and renewed export-control concerns. The decline came two days after the firm disclosed a $2 billion investment in Marvell Technology to expand work on custom AI chips, networking, and silicon photonics.
The market move kept the focus on how geopolitics, regulation, and valuation are shaping sentiment around AI leaders.
NVIDIA stock price was down about 1.3% in midday US trading on April 2, while Marvell also moved lower during the session. The weakness showed that pressure had spread across AI-linked semiconductor names and related infrastructure stocks. Later in the session, NVIDIA traded at $174.17 and Marvell at $105.59, both below the prior close.
The market tone weakened as investors reacted to a fresh geopolitical flare-up tied to Iran. Rising oil prices and a more cautious mood across global markets pushed traders to reduce exposure to growth sectors, including semiconductors. Chip stocks often move sharply during risk-off sessions, and Thursday followed that pattern.
That broader setup added another layer of pressure to Nvidia, which has been one of the market’s biggest AI winners. When geopolitical risk rises, traders often shift away from high-valuation technology shares first. Thursday’s move showed that NVIDIA remained exposed to those wider market swings despite strong demand for AI hardware.
NVIDIA is also dealing with an export environment that remains closely watched. US controls on advanced AI chip sales to China have continued to shape how investors assess Nvidia’s near-term sales path. Questions about approvals, reviews, and shipment limits have kept China-related demand in the spotlight for months.
China remains a major market, but the competitive landscape is changing. In 2025, Chinese GPU and AI chipmakers captured about 41% of China’s AI accelerator server market, while Nvidia’s share fell to 55%, according to IDC data. NVIDIA remained the market leader, but domestic rivals gained ground as policy support for local technology increased.
This shift matters as China has long been an important destination for advanced computing products. Even with NVIDIA holding the lead, a smaller share in a fast-growing market can affect how investors view future sales growth. The stock is therefore reacting not only to current demand but also to concerns about how much room NVIDIA has to expand under tighter trade rules.
Against that backdrop, NVIDIA announced a $2 billion investment in Marvell Technology. The deal expanded work on custom AI chips and networking solutions, focusing on integrating Marvell’s semi-custom silicon and optical interconnect technologies with Nvidia’s processors and networking gear.
The partnership also targets data center bottlenecks related to bandwidth and energy efficiency. Its scope includes silicon photonics and NVLink Fusion compatibility, showing that NVIDIA is pushing deeper into the broader AI infrastructure stack rather than relying only on stand-alone GPU sales. That gives NVIDIA a wider role in how cloud and enterprise customers build AI systems.
NVIDIA’s financial position remains a core reason the stock stays at the center of the AI trade. The company recently reported that January-quarter revenue rose 94% year over year to $68.13 billion, ahead of estimates, while NVIDIA said fiscal fourth-quarter revenue reached a record $68.1 billion and data-center revenue climbed to $62.3 billion.
However, the stock’s decline on Thursday suggested that strong fundamentals do not prevent short-term volatility when geopolitical tensions, export controls, and valuation concerns return to the forefront of market sentiment.
