US stocks jump after oil prices ease and inflation update comes in near expectations

(AP) — U.S. stocks are rebounding Friday and clawing back much of their losses for the week after oil prices eased off their recent spurt. An update on inflation across the United States that came in close to economists’ expectations, even if prices are still rising too quickly for everyone’s liking, also helped calm the market.

A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

The S&P 500 climbed 1.1% and was on track to break a four-day losing streak, its longest since June. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 554 points, or 1.1%, as of 11:45 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 1.3% higher.

They got help from a pullback in oil prices, which had jumped to their highest levels since May because of the ongoing war with Iran. The price for a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, fell 3% to $104.45 after getting near $110 overnight.

That took a bit of pressure off inflation, which remains stubbornly high. A report on Friday showed that U.S. consumers had to pay prices for gasoline, food and other costs of living that were 3.4% higher last month than a year earlier.

While still high, that was close to what economists expected and what Wall Street was prepared for. The data also strengthened expectations among traders that the Federal Reserve will feel compelled to hike its main interest rate at its meeting next week.

Such moves are the typical way the Fed tries to rein in high inflation, and they work by filtering through the bond market, making it more expensive for everyone to borrow money, slowing the economy and hopefully removing fuel for further inflation.

The rising expectations for an upcoming hike to rates sent the yield of the two-year Treasury, which moves with guesses for upcoming Fed action, to 4.61% from 4.56% late Thursday.

Longer-term yields, though, actually eased. That could be an indication that investors in the bond market see upcoming hikes to rates by the Fed helping to keep control of inflation over the longer term. The yield on the 10-year Treasury edged down to 4.94% from 4.95% late Thursday.

Economists say hikes could quiet questions about the Fed’s commitment to keeping inflation under control. Worries had risen earlier in the summer about its credibility and whether it would do what’s needed to bring inflation down, even if it causes pain for the economy in the short term.

Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh has been adamant about not giving hints about where the Fed may take interest rates, though he did calm some concerns among investors at a speech late last month. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, has been pushing for interest rates to go lower rather than higher.

“Symbolism can trump substance, even when it comes to monetary policy,” according to Brian Jacobsen, chief economic strategist at Annex Wealth Management.

It’s all coming at a moment when confidence among Americans continues to sour. A preliminary report from the University of Michigan on Friday said U.S. consumer sentiment is falling, with declines for both Democrats and Republicans.

Their expectations for inflation coming in the year ahead jumped to 4.6% from 4% last month. That’s the highest reading since June, and it’s concerning for the Fed and for economists because it can trigger a vicious cycle of behavior that worsens inflation.

On Wall Street, Kroger rose 2.3% after the grocer reported a stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. It also held firm on its forecast for profit over the fiscal year, even though it trimmed its forecast for an important underlying measure of revenue growth.

ACV Auctions, whose digital marketplace connects wholesale buyers and sellers of vehicles, soared 44.4% after Copart said it would pay $10.50 in cash for each of the company’s shares. Copart, whose online vehicle auctions sold more than 4 million units in the last year, rose 1.2%.

An early jump for Oracle faded as trading progressed after the tech giant reported stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. After initially leaping 8.5%, its stock swiveled between modest gains and losses and was most recently up 0.5%.

Stocks closely tied to the artificial-intelligence industry broadly became shaky this summer on worries that the AI frenzy may have sent prices too high.

In stock markets abroad, indexes rose in Europe as oil prices eased. London’s FTSE 100 added 0.3% after a report said the U.K. economy was stronger in July than economists expected.

Stock markets were weaker in Asia, where Japan’s Nikkei 225 lost 1.9% and South Korea’s Kospi fell 1.8%.