Markets News, Oct. 15, 2026: Dow Ends Up 550 Points as Investors Rotate Out of Tech Stocks; Wholesale Prices Top Expectations

U.S. indexes closed higher Thursday, led by the blue-chip Dow , as investors rotated out of tech stocks.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 1.1%, or 550 points, behind gains from the likes of Nike (NKE), Salesforce (CRM), and Home Depot (HD). The benchmark S&P 500 rose 0.3%, while the tech-focused Nasdaq Composite erased steep losses to finish up 0.1%.

Yesterday, the Nasdaq and S&P 500 registered their worst days since July, tumbling a respective 1.9% and 1.1% after the Consumer Price Index reading for September came in hotter than economists expected, lifting expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates later this month. The Dow ticked lower.

The wholesale Producer Price Index data for September came in above estimates before Thursday’s opening bell, Wholesale prices rose 1.3% month-over-month and 6.3% year-over-year, up from a respective 0.4% and 5.4% in August and ahead of economists’ expectations of 0.6% and 5.5%. September U.S. retail sales doubled estimates with a 0.8% rise, and weekly jobless claims came in a tick below expectations at 199,000.

According to CME FedWatch, traders now see a 29% likelihood the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates at its meeting in two weeks and an 88% likelihood the central bank will lift rates at least a quarter-percentage point at its December meeting.

“Neither the CPI nor PPI show inflation moving back towards the Fed’s target, leaving the Fed with ‘more work to do,’ in Chair Warsh’s words at Jackson Hole earlier this year,” Bill Adams, Chief U.S. Economist, Fifth Third Commercial Bank, said in written commentary. “The retail sales report wasn’t soft enough to shift the Fed’s focus away from inflation.”

The 10-year Treasury yield was around 5.09% in late-afternoon trading, down nine basis points from Wednesday’s close. The yield had soared to 5.33% after Wednesday’s CPI data before reversing course as the tech-driven stock selloff drove investors to safer assets.

CoreWeave (CRWV) shares reversed early losses, closing 6% higher. They had dropped more than 15% Wednesday on concerns about the Nvidia-backed firm’s debt.

Other stocks tied to AI were sharply lower Thursday. Dell Technologies (DELL) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) ranked among the worst performers in the S&P 500 for a second straight day. Seagate Technology (STX) and Western Digital (WDC) weighed on Roundhill’s Memory ETF (DRAM), which was down about 1.5% following a 5% drop yesterday. The broader iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) was roughly 1% lower after falling 4.5% Wednesday.

Nvidia (NVDA), the world’s most valuable public company, fell nearly 2% following a 3% pullback yesterday. Apple (AAPL), which yesterday joined Nvidia as the only companies to close with a market capitalization above $5 trillion, ended 0.3% lower. The Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF (MAGS), which tracks the the Magnificent Seven mega-cap tech stocks, finished down 0.3%.

U.S.-listed shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM) also were caught in the tech selloff, declining almost 2% even though the world’s largest contract chip supplier posted record profit for a sixth straight quarter.

Oil prices were mixed Thursday as traders assessed Middle East developments. U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude futures gained 2.7% to $97.65 a barrel around 4 p.m. ET, while front-month Brent crude futures, the international benchmark, edged 0.2% lower to $105.85.

Bitcoin was trading around $82,400, up modestly over the past 24 hours. The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the value of the greenback against a basket of foreign currencies, declined 0.5% to 102.04. Gold futures rose 2.1% to $4,195 an ounce.

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