CNBC Daily Open: Nasdaq hits high despite Nvidia lagging behind

This report is from today's CNBC Daily Open, our international markets newsletter. CNBC Daily Open brings investors up to speed on everything they need to know, no matter where they are. Like what you see? You can subscribe here.

What you need to know today

Losing streak for Dow
The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.25% for its eighth straight day of losses, the longest streak since 2018. The S&P 500 gained 0.38% and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.24% to close at a new high. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index dropped 0.12%. France's CAC 40 fell 0.71% after Moody's on Saturday downgraded the country's credit score to Aa3 from Aa2.

Correction: Nvidia
Nvidia shares fell 1.7% on Monday to close at $132. That's around 11% off its closing high of $148.88 in November, putting Nvidia in correction territory. That said, Nvidia is still up 166% this year, and a correction doesn't necessarily signal a sustained downward trend. Moreover, other chipmakers, like Broadcom, are still powering forward.  

Clock's tick-tocking
On Monday, TikTok asked the U.S. Supreme Court to consider its appeal to block a law that could effectively ban the app in the country by Jan. 19. On the same day, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew met U.S. President-elect Donald Trump at the latter's Mar-a-Lago club, NBC News confirmed.

Son shines in the U.S.
During his Monday visit to Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence, Softbank CEO Masayoshi Son announced a $100 billion investment in the U.S. over the next four years. In the joint announcement with Trump, Son also promised to create 100,000 jobs focused on artificial intelligence and related infrastructure.

[PRO] 'Market melt up'
The market has priced in a more or less certain 25 basis point rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday. But if the rate cut does take place, the Fed "risks a market melt up" that could eventually cause stocks to pull back from highs, Ed Yardeni, president of Yardeni Research, told CNBC.

The bottom line

Playing the stock market can feel like a game of Mario Kart.

(For those who haven't been acquainted with the joys of Mario Kart, it's a racing game involving Nintendo's Mario and friends.)

One moment you're breezily in the lead, the next someone lagging behind speeds past you because you faltered a bend.

Nvidia's currently in that unenviable position.

The frustrating thing for Nvidia — and its shareholders — is that apart from an investigation by a Chinese regulator, there hasn't been any other major bumps on the road: In fact, the company's fundamentals are stable.

As Keith Lerner, co-chief investment officer at Truist, points out, Nvidia's position in the semiconductor and artificial intelligence industry remains unchanged. "You need Nvidia, and you need their chips for infrastructure," said Lerner. "But I think what the market's also saying is that there are other beneficiaries beyond that."

The fact that the Nasdaq Composite closed at another record despite Nvidia falling is a sign of that rotation into other semiconductor and AI-related stocks.

Most conspicuously, Broadcom shares have hammered the accelerator, surging forward on Friday and Monday on the back of a glowing fourth-quarter earnings report and increased price targets by banks.

"Momentum has been driving this stock. I don't think momentum is going to kill it quite yet, but momentum does what momentum does, which is it seeks the higher flyer," said Kim Forrest, chief investment officer at Bokeh Capital Partners.

The key difference between playing the stock market and Mario Kart is that the latter is a zero-sum game — you lose if your friend wins — but that's not always the case with the former. You can own both Nvidia and Broadcom, and benefit regardless of the race's leader.

— CNBC's Ari Levy, Samantha Subin, Brian Evans and Jess Pound contributed to this report.