Friends

Stocks traded higher for the day but did finish well off the highs of the day. Things were going just fine until the release of the Fed minutes and the discovery that some Fed officials think interest rate hikes might be warranted should inflation issues persist. Hold on a minute, we’ve been talking about and anticipating more rate cuts in 2026. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think rate hikes are really in the cards for this year, but it sure gave market participants something to concern themselves with for a few minutes.

By the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 129 points to finish the day at 49,662. The S&P 500 was up 38 points to close at 6,881. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 175 points to close at 22,753. Gold was up $98 to trade at $5,004 per ounce, while oil was up $3.01 to trade at $65.34 per barrel WTI.

Tomorrow, we will get a look at Walmart’s earnings which should give us some insight on the consumer. We know that high end consumers are keeping high end retailers fat and happy, but the spending habits of the middle class can be a signal to what’s ahead. We’ll let you know how it plays out.

Have a nice evening everyone.