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London Quick Take - 5 Things to Know in Markets Today - 13 Nov
5 to Know in Markets Today
1.Microsoft outage
Microsoft has suffered a major outage, in case you hadn't noticed. I don't think it ought to really impact shares but MSFT dipped –3% in pre-market trading. Certainly it's underlining the importance of cybersecurity. The outage has had widespread effects across business and government, but share trading seems to be fine.
European shares retreated on Friday but were still heading for their best week since June, with the broad Stoxx 600 +2.4% on the week. The FTSE 100 was flattish around 10,850 before notching a gain of +0.2% to 10,887 while the DAX pulled back around –0.4% in the early part of the session.
2.Nvidia woes hit broader market
Nvidia shares were dumped at the open yesterday, down as much as 14%, but retail bought the dip to steady the ship on huge volume. We saw a huge spike in buying NVDA as it touched $150, before ending the session down 4.3% at $166.About 20x as many trades in Nvidia yesterday as the next most traded stock. Enough ink has been spilled on Huang, but suffice to say a material de-rating is warranted in the interim due to succession risk, regulatory overhangs and a general unease around what might happen. Investors are seeing this an opportunity to buy; Nvidia is not going away with Huang and there is a strong sense that it's oversold, but near-term you are thinking it could conceivably get worse. My take is the bad news is all out.
Nvidia's woes hobbled the wider market. The S&P 500 fell 0.4%, the Nasdaq 100 lost 0.3% but held its 200-day moving average and the Dow declined 0.4% on Thursday as Nvidia’s leadership crisis and rising oil prices weighed on sentiment. Nvidia dropped 4.3% following CEO Jensen Huang’s departure, while rivals AMD and Broadcom gained 5.9% and 5.5%, respectively. Applied Materials delivered a thumping quarter but shares barely moved.
Nvidia's woes hobbled the wider market. The S&P 500 fell 0.4%, the Nasdaq 100 lost 0.3% but held its 200-day moving average and the Dow declined 0.4% on Thursday as Nvidia’s leadership crisis and rising oil prices weighed on sentiment. Nvidia dropped 4.3% following CEO Jensen Huang’s departure, while rivals AMD and Broadcom gained 5.9% and 5.5%, respectively. Applied Materials delivered a thumping quarter but shares barely moved.
3.What next for Nvidia?
f I'd had 50 guesses on what would be the next thing to derail the stock market, Jensen Huang resigning as Nvidia CEO because of an affair with an (alleged) Chinese spy would not have made the cut. Not on the 2026 bingo card (add that to Maduro being snatched and the US attacking Iran..) Shares are now -34% off the ATH...remember this drawdown began at the start of October. While the derating is deserved it feels like we are at the point of maximum bad news and shares are trading at 12.7x forward earnings, 10x 2028, 8x 2029... the cheapest it's been in forever...massive discount to the S&P 500. Another capitulation moment, this time in a single stock. It's been dead money for a while, but the derating creates a way more compelling risk/reward profile for the stock.
The whole affair and departure of Huang throws up big questions for Nvidia, and creates overhang for the stock. One is succession risk and the overhang from losing the key man. Two is ongoing regulatory overhang from Congressional and potentially FBI investigations taking place. Three, how does a rudderless Nvidia impact the broader AI trade? And four, chuck in some execution risk for the new CEO and you can see why the stock is down.
First up, Colette Kress, chief financial officer, will step in as interim CEO until a replacement can be found. Names being chucked around include senior Nvidia executive Ian Buck, big on technical expertise, and even Rene Haas from ARM Holdings or Tim Cook from Apple.
Huang operated without a public succession plan and managed roughly 60 direct reports. How will the board balance internal candidates—such as Kress or senior hardware/software leads—against external tech executives?
Nvidia’s about to find out whether Huang’s grip on the company and flat organisational structure was effectively storing up trouble. He cannot be replaced, but a great CEO can be found and take the company in similar direction. But his technical knowledge and understanding of every last bit of product is basically unique and impossible to replicate.
There's still the regulatory overhang. Alongside Department of Justice inquiries into Megaspeed and Alice Huang, three U.S. House committee chairs requested a closed briefing on 18 November regarding national security concerns. There's going to be a tougher relationship with Washington, even if Howard Lutnick is fighting its corner for now.
These are considerable overhangs for the stock and the de-rating is deserved. It’s likely positive for peers like AMD and Broadcom, negative for companies like CoreWeave, but my hunch is that it does not materially impact the broader AI space, unless a replacement executes badly. Nvidia has a product roadmap and orders well into next decade, so looks well placed for now.
The whole affair and departure of Huang throws up big questions for Nvidia, and creates overhang for the stock. One is succession risk and the overhang from losing the key man. Two is ongoing regulatory overhang from Congressional and potentially FBI investigations taking place. Three, how does a rudderless Nvidia impact the broader AI trade? And four, chuck in some execution risk for the new CEO and you can see why the stock is down.
First up, Colette Kress, chief financial officer, will step in as interim CEO until a replacement can be found. Names being chucked around include senior Nvidia executive Ian Buck, big on technical expertise, and even Rene Haas from ARM Holdings or Tim Cook from Apple.
Huang operated without a public succession plan and managed roughly 60 direct reports. How will the board balance internal candidates—such as Kress or senior hardware/software leads—against external tech executives?
Nvidia’s about to find out whether Huang’s grip on the company and flat organisational structure was effectively storing up trouble. He cannot be replaced, but a great CEO can be found and take the company in similar direction. But his technical knowledge and understanding of every last bit of product is basically unique and impossible to replicate.
There's still the regulatory overhang. Alongside Department of Justice inquiries into Megaspeed and Alice Huang, three U.S. House committee chairs requested a closed briefing on 18 November regarding national security concerns. There's going to be a tougher relationship with Washington, even if Howard Lutnick is fighting its corner for now.
These are considerable overhangs for the stock and the de-rating is deserved. It’s likely positive for peers like AMD and Broadcom, negative for companies like CoreWeave, but my hunch is that it does not materially impact the broader AI space, unless a replacement executes badly. Nvidia has a product roadmap and orders well into next decade, so looks well placed for now.
4.Oil rises as Trump downplays need for Iran deal
Oil is ending the week on the advance with Brent to $96 after dipping below $90 at one point earlier in the week after US President Trumpsaid the administration was not seeking a deal to end the war with Iran. Instead he's told JD Vance, who had led efforts to kickstart negotiations with Tehran, to focus on domestic politics instead. That has dented optimism for the US administration to pursue a deal, though it's not having a material impact on flows.
5.Aviva premiums +19%
Aviva shares rose after the company reported a 19% rise in general insurance premiums to £11.8 billion in the first nine months of 2026. Wealth inflows jumped 31%. Management stick to guidance for operating earnings per share to grow ~11%. UK and Ireland general insurance premiums rose +27%, driven by Direct Line and the new home insurance partnership with Nationwide.
Wise reported +21% rise in active customers in the first half of the year and +23% in revenues. Management noted 16mn people moved$141bn in the first six months, up 24% year on year. Customers also used Wise for more, spending $27 billion on Wise cards and increasing holdings by 28% to $44bn.