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Nvidia’s Moment: Navigating Tariffs and the AI Power Shift · The SPY Trader

• 0:00
  Good morning and a very happy Monday to you , fellow market watchers !
• 0:04
  I am your host , Penny Wiseman , and you are listening to Spy Trader .
• 0:08
  It is 5 am on Monday , February 23rd , 2026 , here in the Pacific time zone , and we are kicking off what promises to be a wild week on Wall Street .
• 0:19
  Grab your coffee and let’s dive into the numbers .
• 0:22
  Right now , we are seeing a bit of a tugofwar in the markets .
• 0:27
  On Friday , the S&P 500 , which we track through the SPY ETF , closed at 6,909.51 .
• 0:35
  The techheavy Nasdaq , or QQQ , jumped nearly one percent to 22,886.07 , and the Dow Jones Industrial Average , known by the ticker DIA , sat at 49,625.97 .
• 0:51
  However , don’t let those green numbers from Friday fool you into thinking it is all smooth sailing .
• 0:58
  This morning , futures are trading lower by about pointtwo to pointfour percent .
• 1:03
  The big story is the roller coaster of trade news .
• 1:06
  On Friday , the Supreme Court ruled sixtothree against the President’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose broad tariffs .
• 1:15
  This sparked a huge relief rally , especially for retailers like Amazon , which saw its stock AMZN rise twopointsix percent on hopes of getting tariff refunds .
• 1:26
  But that joy was shortlived .
• 1:29
  The White House immediately countered with a new fifteen percent global tariff under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 .
• 1:38
  That has definitely cooled the excitement in the premarket .
• 1:41
  Beyond the trade war , we are looking at some real concerns about stagflation .
• 1:46
  The economy grew at a sluggish onepointfour percent in the fourth quarter of 2025 , which was a big miss compared to expectations , partly thanks to that recent government shutdown .
• 1:59
  Meanwhile , inflation , measured by Core PCE , is stuck at three percent .
• 2:04
  With the Fed keeping rates between threeandahalf and threeandthreequarters percent , they are in a tough spot .
• 2:10
  They cannot easily cut rates while inflation is still this high .
• 2:14
  In the tech world , things are getting spicy .
• 2:16
  Cybersecurity companies like Cloudflare , ticker NET , and Crowdstrike , ticker CRWD , have taken a hit .
• 2:23
  Why ?
• 2:24
  Because Anthropic released a new AI tool that can scan and fix computer code automatically .
• 2:31
  This is making investors wonder if traditional security software is becoming obsolete .
• 2:36
  On the flip side , utility companies are the surprise stars .
• 2:40
  Southern Company , ticker SO , and PPL Corp , ticker PPL , are planning over one hundred billion dollars in spending to build the power lines needed for AI data centers .
• 2:51
  It turns out AI needs a lot of electricity !
• 2:54
  Looking ahead , this is a massive earnings week .
• 2:57
  Home Depot reports Tuesday , giving us a look at the consumer .
• 3:02
  But the main event is Wednesday when Nvidia , ticker NVDA , and Salesforce , ticker CRM , report .
• 3:09
  Nvidia is the fourpointsix trilliondollar elephant in the room that will decide if the AI boom continues .
• 3:15
  So , what is the game plan for your portfolio ?
• 3:18
  First , let’s talk about hedging .
• 3:19
  With inflation high and trade tensions rising , Gold is back in style .
• 3:24
  The SPDR Gold Shares , or GLD , has topped five thousand dollars an ounce .
• 3:30
  It is a great hedge right now .
• 3:32
  I also like the Energy Select Sector SPDR , ticker XLE .
• 3:37
  With Brent crude over seventy dollars due to tensions in the Gulf , energy stocks help protect you from rising costs elsewhere .
• 3:45
  Second , consider defensive growth .
• 3:47
  If software is getting disrupted , the physical infrastructure is where the moat is .
• 3:53
  Check out the Southern Company , ticker SO , or the Vanguard Real Estate ETF , ticker VNQ .
• 4:00
  People always need power and physical space , regardless of what the latest AI model does .
• 4:06
  Finally , play it safe with your core holdings .
• 4:09
  Instead of betting everything on tech right now , consider the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF , ticker IVV .
• 4:17
  It gives you a broader mix of financials and industrials .
• 4:20
  My summary recommendation ?
• 4:22
  Keep some cash on the sidelines in Tbill funds like BIL or SGOV until we see those Nvidia results on Wednesday .
• 4:31
  This week is a binary event — if Nvidia hits it out of the park , the S&P could hit seven thousand .
• 4:38
  If not , we might be testing some lows .
• 4:41
  Stay sharp , stay friendly , and I will see you back here in a few hours .
• 4:45
  Happy trading !