WEEKEND WRAP: Markets Remain Somewhat Cool Leading Into Midterms, Though Oil Prices Have Spiked; Silver Trounced in Futures Markets; Interest Rates Tamed

Outside of the usual political grandstanding, there's little to move markets other than earnings reports, which will take center stage this week as some of the biggest publicly-traded companies report for the third quarter.

Positioning prior to the midterms remains a fool's game. There's clearly a newfound disdain for tech and AI, owing mostly to crumbling cost structures to build data centers and fund the expansion of the latest, greatest technology. Since closing at its most recent all-time high on October 6, the NASDAQ has fallen some 5.3%.

According to early voting exit polls and data, Democrats are leading Republicans as they usually do with actual Election Day now just 16 days off. By Monday, another handful of states that set the timetable for early voting at 15 days prior to the election will join the fray, with the last of the early-voting states joining in no later than the following Monday.

Whether or not one buys into the "two-party system," the results should cause more factionalism, no matter which party ends up in control of the House and Senate. The one certainty is that the White House will remain in control of the Republican party, with President Trump as its titular leader. His effectiveness in the final two years of his term in office, will be affected negatively if Democrats win just the House, and possibly catastrophically if they take the Senate as well, because then, a case for impeachment might actually result in his removal from office, or, as was the case with Richard M. Nixon, he could be forced into resignation by his own party, saving the country from the horrors of an impeachment trial, though neither party seems to be disposed to forego such delectable drama.

So, stocks will move the market this week, rather than politics, which is as it should be.

Stocks

Only the Dow Industrials and NYSE Composite managed gains this week as fears of a financial AI implosion hounded the tech sector and sent the NASDAQ and S&P lower. The movement was most pronounced on the NAZ, though it is nowhere near panic stages. That will likely come after choose one: a) the October 27-28 FOMC meeting; b) the midterms, or; c) the December 8-9 FOMC meeting.

One way or another, the delicate dancing narrative that the Republican party has contrived won't survive a political shakeup nor will it prosper under higher interest rates at the federal funds level. The elephant in the room being the extreme deficits now becoming de rigeur for incumbent parties on both sides of the aisle (as both the congress and the presidency are responsible parties), discussion of the bankrupting of the nation is not a debatable issue in any campaign, anywhere.

Neither side wishes to address the problem with interest on the debt amounting to an annual bill of more than $1.25 trillion, though it is likely the most important issue facing the country today, has been for at least the past five years, and will continue to be so until it is addressed or the government defaults or inflates the currency out of existence, the latter being the most likely outcome.

In the meantime, there will be less than three weeks left of shouting, finger-pointing, posturing, and name-calling on the campaign trail. Sometimes, it's better to get caught up trying to game stocks than listening to an endless stream of intelligence-insulting sloganeering.

The week ahead is one of the two biggest in terms of volume of companies reporting third quarter results:

Monday (before open): Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF), Fifth Third Bank (FITB); (after close) Steel Dynamics (STLD), Crown Holdings (CCK), Zions Bancorporation (ZION)

Tuesday (before open): 3M (MMM), Hasbro (HAS), Ally Financial (ALLY, Northrop Grumman (NOC), General Motors (GM), Ge Aerospace (GE), Halliburton (HAL); (after close) Spacex (SPCX), Netflix (NFLX), United Airlines (UAL), Chubb (CB), Intuitive Surgical (ISRG), CapitalOne (COF)

Wednesday (before open): Northern Trust (NTRS), AT&T (T), CME Group (CME), Abbot Labs (ABT), Danaher (DHR), Philip Morris (PM); (after close): IBM (IBM), Tesla (TSLA), Meta Platforms (META), Lam Research (LRCX), Texas Instruments (TXN), Crown Castle (CCI)

Thursday, (before open): Comcast (CMCSA), Tractor Supply (TSCO, Lockheed Martin (LMT), Nokia (NOK), Dow (DOW), Blackstone Group (BX), American Airlines (AAL), Valero (VLD); (after close): IngCentral (RING), Bloom Energy (BE), Western Digital (WDC), Verisign (VRSN), Sallie Mae (SLM), Newmont Mining (NEM)

Friday, (before open): Booze Allen (BAH), American Express (AXP), Gentex (GNTX)

On the economic front, the market will learn about Housing Starts, Building Permits, and Pending Home Sales on Tuesday, and S&P Global Flash PMI and University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment on Friday.

Relevant data releases can be found at Trading View.

Treasury Yield Curve Rates

Date	1 Mo	1.5 mo	2 Mo	3 Mo	4 Mo	6 Mo	1 Yr
09/11/2026	3.93	3.99	4.05	4.07	4.15	4.12	4.35
09/18/2026	3.97	3.98	4.10	4.14	4.24	4.24	4.44
09/25/2026	4.04	4.14	4.20	4.24	4.32	4.33	4.50
10/02/2026	4.04	4.09	4.11	4.19	4.26	4.27	4.46
10/09/2026	4.13	4.13	4.13	4.25	4.29	4.32	4.47
10/16/2026	4.12	4.14	4.17	4.26	4.32	4.34	4.46

Date	2 Yr	3 Yr	5 Yr	7 Yr	10 Yr	20 Yr	30 Yr
09/11/2026	4.63	4.69	4.78	4.87	4.96	5.38	5.35
09/18/2026	4.76	4.83	4.86	4.93	5.01	5.38	5.34
09/25/2026	4.81	4.94	4.98	5.06	5.17	5.54	5.49
10/02/2026	4.83	4.96	5.06	5.17	5.28	5.67	5.63
10/09/2026	4.80	4.89	5.02	5.13	5.24	5.65	5.60
10/16/2026	4.74	4.82	4.89	4.98	5.09	5.47	5.43

Yields cooled significantly in the week as buyer demand was satiated and possibly overbought, though the deep insider faction of government operatives cannot be fully dismissed as the cause of the abrupt relaxation. It certainly seems to be more political theater than anything else.

10-year notes yielded some 15 basis points lower than the previous Friday, and 30year bond yields dropped by 17 bips. Price action on shorter-term two-year notes was less pronounced, dropping just six basis points. Spread on 2s-10s fell to +35, and full spectrum eased to +131. The temporary easing is just that: temporary. Lower rates are likely to persist until the next FOMC meeting on October 27-28

Spreads:

2s-10s
2026
1/2: +72
1/9: +64
1/16: +65
1/23: +64
1/30: +74
2/6: +72
2/13: +64
2/20: +60
2/27: +59
3/6: +59
3/13: +55
3/20: +51
3/27: +56
4/3: +51
4/10: +50
4/17: +55
4/24: +53
5/1: +51
5/8: +48
5/15: +50
5/22: +43
5/29: +47
6/5: +38
6/12: +37
6/18: +27
6/26: +31
7/2: +35
7/10: +35
7/17: +37
7/24: +36
7/31: +47
8/7: +46
8/14: +51
8/21: +50
8/28: +39
9/4: +41
9/11: +33
9/18: +25
9/25: +36
10/2: +45
10/9: +44
10/16: +35

Full Spectrum (30-days - 30-years)
2026
1/2: +114
1/9: +112
1/16: +108
1/23: +104
1/30: +115
2/6: +113
2/13: +97
2/20: +100
2/27: +90
3/6: +102
3/13: +115
3/20: +123
3/27: +124
4/3: +120
4/10: +124
4/17: +119
4/24: +122
5/1: +126
5/8: +124
5/15: +141
5/22: +135
5/29: +127
6/5: +130
6/12: +128
6/18: +121
6/26: +117
7/2: +128
7/10: +135
7/17: +133
7/24: +136
7/31: +149
8/7: +140
8/14: +146
8/21: +147
8/28: +138
9/4: +145
9/11: +142
9/18: +137
9/25: +145
10/2: +159
10/9: +147
10?16: +131

Oil/Gas

Oil prices spiked higher, with Brent approaching $110/barrel and WTI crude futures surpassing $100 as conditions in the Middle East continue to be difficult to assess and oil flows - despite some rosy predictions and proclamations - are still down considerably.

Average price for a gallon of unleaded regular gasoline in the U.S. was $4.34 last week and $4.27 this week, though this brief respite is unlikely to last, given the higher price of crude. The midterms disaster for Republicans is unfolding at gas stations and grocery stores across the country.

Gas prices in key states:

California (leader): $6.15 (-0.24)
Washington: $5.37 (-0.07)
Indiana: $3.86 (-0.06)
Oklahoma: $3.88 (-0.09)
Louisiana: $3.82 (-0.09)
Mississippi: $3.85 (-0.04)
Florida: $4.07 (-0.04)
Illinois: $4.67 (-0.04)
Pennsylvania: $4.47 (+0.02)
New York: $4.37 (-0.06)
Maryland: $4.10 (-0.14)
Michigan: $4.47 (-0.20)
Texas: $3.74 (-0.03)
Georgia: $3.68 (-0.09)
North Carolina $3.59 (lowest)

On Sunday, October 18, there are thirty-four (34) states with average prices at or above $4.00, with fourteen (14) below the $4 threshold, not including Hawaii ($5.61) and Alaska ($4.90), with three above $5 (California, Nevada, and Washington) and one, California, above $6.00. The Southeast has maintained as the lowest region overall over the past 16 weeks, with prices falling below $4.00 again this week ($3.59-3.88) in places like Tennessee, Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Texas, and Mississippi, with the Midwest region second, prices slightly higher, from $3.95 to $4.21. Exceptions include Florida in the Southeast and Michigan and Illinois in the Midwest.

All Northeast states, from Delaware and Maryland all the way to Maine, continue to average well above $4.00.

Bitcoin

This week: $81,297.99
Last week: $82,717.91
2 weeks ago: $85,242.28
6 months ago: $72,902.99
One year ago: $107,365.60
Five years ago: $61,334.40

Bitcoin continued to slide from recent highs, the usual predictions of breakout and higher prices for the imaginary tokens were dealt with a case of interest rate reality, sending the speculators scrambling for explanations.

It's very simple. In a world full of hard-and-soft-money choices and raging inflation, vapor money isn't for everybody. In fact, most of the pricing activity in bitcoin and other crypto-currencies and tokens of faith are driven by little more than naked speculation. Once the specs are thoroughly routed, bitcoin and its brethren will return to roughly their intrinsic values, approaching zero.

Precious Metals

Gold:Silver Ratio: 73.22; last week: 69.09

Futures, per COMEX continuous contracts:

Gold price 9/18: $4,415.90
Gold price 9/25: $4,320.50
Gold price 10/2: $4,172.10
Gold price 10/9: $4,220.30
Gold price 10/16: $4,186.70

Silver price 9/18: $66.79
Silver price 9/25: $64.71
Silver price 10/2: $60.71
Silver price 10/9: $61.11
Silver price 10/16: $57.13

SPOT: (kitco)
Gold 9/18: $4,377.63
Gold 9/25: $4,283.78
Gold 10/2: $4,141.90
Gold 10/9: $4,193.60
Gold 10/16: $4,164.10

Silver 9/18: $66.24
Silver 9/25: $64.28
Silver 10/2: $60.39
Silver 10/9: $60.70
Silver 10/16: $56.87

Silver became much cheaper against gold, according to the gold:silver ratio, as shorts had their way on the COMEX and in London, sending silver to its lowest price in nearly a year. Gold, being more stable, held up much better, with a drop in price on the spot market of less than $30 per ounce. By comparison, silver was shattered, losing nearly $4/ounce, a 6.3% move, week to week.

The price decline in silver represents nothing more than seasonal bets and concerted efforts to drive the price lower in the derivatives markets. A shortage of silver supply still exists, though it was easier for short sellers to take command over the course of the week - and over the past eight months - because of rising interest rates. The quoted spot prices, derived from COMEX leveraged bets, has less to do with supply and demand and more to do with commitment of traders who see the metal as a trade rather than a commodity in demand.

Being much more volatile than gold's price, which is dominated by central bank buying of the metal as a reserve holding, silver's price decline may contnue over the short term with industrial demand the main price component rather than silver being considered a monetary metal. In most circles, it is not greatly considered for its monetary qualities, a common error in today's derivative suppression regime. Movement in the GSR makes silver the preferable investment at the present time.

Here are the most recent prices for common one ounce gold and silver items sold on eBay (free shipping included, numismatics excluded):

Item/Price	Low	High	Average	Median
1 oz silver coin:	61.99	79.99	66.00	64.83
1 oz silver bar:	65.23	79.93	70.48	70.67
1 oz gold coin:	4301.90	4537.50	4414.94	4404.40
1 oz gold bar:	4331.87	4438.04	4369.27	4356.90

The Single Ounce Silver Market Price Benchmark (SOSMPB) was wallopped this week, dropping to $68.00, a mammoth loss of $6.20 per troy ounce from the October 11 price of $74.20.

WEEKEND WRAP

With just about two weeks until the votes begin a final and the makeup of the U.S. House and Senate are resolved, stocks will be more in focus than politics, with a huge batch of earnings reports on the week. Stocks have shown weakness over the past week plus, but there's a good chance that the indices will maintain resilience until the elections. After that, markets may become more of a free-for-all, with a multitude of changes on the horizon dependent of the direction of voting. Polls are still leaning the Democrats way, but the Republican narrative machine continues to assert its considerable will on the media.

Anything - and maybe everything - goes in less than 20 days.

At the Close, Friday, October 16, 2026:
Dow: 52,002.41, -175.28 (-0.34%)
NASDAQ: 26,140.03, -572.99 (-2.14%)
S&P 500: 7,659.44, -84.62 (-1.09%)
NYSE Composite: 24,088.63, +21.98 (+0.09%)

For the Week:
Dow: +347.46
NASDAQ: -1226.14
S&P 500: -152.10
NYSE Composite: +149.53
Dow Transports: -75.69

Disclaimer: Information disseminated on this site should not be construed as investment advice. Downtown Magazine Inc., Money Daily and it's owners, affiliates and/or employees are not investment advisors and do not offer specific investment advice. All investments have risk. You should consult a professional investment advisor or stock broker or use your individual judgement when making investment decisions. By viewing this site, you hold harmless Downtown Magazine Inc., Money Daily, its owners, affiliates and employees against any and all liability. Copyright 2026, Downtown Magazine Inc., all rights reserved.

Stocks Ignore Inflation, Oil, Gas Prices, and Discouraging Earnings Reports from Financials as Midterms Loom

Stocks shook off the inflation news from the past two days of September CPI and PPI readings above expectations. By most standards, those inflation numbers were about the worst news Wall Street could have received. On a scale of 1-10, both figures came in at about 8 or 9. What’s worse, is that most savvy Wall Street investors understand just how understated the inflation metrics really are.

Given that information, however, stocks, after a slow start, rallied for the duration of the session, turning red to green and also ignoring the rising prices of oil and gasoline. Maybe the masters of the universe who ply markets with seemingly unlimited amounts of money know something nobody else does. An alternate argument can be made that these ongoing distortions in market dynamics are all tied to politics, specifically, the midterm elections on November 3rd.

So, the end of the week arrives with the major indices split, the Dow and S&P positive, but the NASDAQ down 653 points. Investors are poring over the last of the week's earnings reports.

After Thursday's close, these companies reported:
Alcoa (AA) - EPS beat, revenue miss, shares higher by 4% pre-market
Simmons Bank (SFNC) - EPS beat, revenue miss, shares flat
Interactive Brokers (IBKR) - EPS miss, revenue beat, shares off one percent
J.B. Hunt (JBHT) - EPS beat, revenue beat, shares down 3%

On Friday, before the open:
M&T Bank (MTB) - EPS beat, revenue in line, shares off one percent
Truist Financial (TFC) - EPS miss, stock down 1-2%
Citizens Financial Group (CFG) - EPS beat, shares down 2%
Regions Financial (RF) - EPS beat, revenue miss, shares up 1-2%
Travelers (TRV) - EPS, revenue beats, shares down 4.5%

The recurring theme for mainly bank stocks this quarter has been winning on EPS, but coming up short on revenue. Apparently, banks of all sizes are making more money on higher interest rates, but, with lower revenue. Spreads on interest-sensitive loans are good for business, but they aren't writing new loans, which would make sense, given higher mortgage and small business loan rates.

The larger banks that reported earlier in the week have also shown weakness. Over the past month, led by Bank of America's 10.71% decline, JP Morgan (-3.84%), Goldman Sachs (-4.98%), Wells Fargo (-4.94%) and Citigroup (-7.33%) are all down, indicating stress in the banking system. What's spurring the selling, besides nose-bleed prices, are fears of a breakdown in AI-related and commercial real estate loans, both of which have been nder pressure, along with the nagging low revenue story. If banks aren't making loans, the economy isn't moving and a recession may be close at hand.

The case for the one Dow component reporting Friday, Travelers (TRV), is unusual in that the stock is sitting near all-time highs, and posted strong results outside of what they call "catastrophe losses", which increased 34% in the quarter just ended. That seems to be just a part of the story. Profit-taking on a stock that is up 32% year-to-date completes the picture.

With the opening bell a half hour ahead, futures are mixed, with the Dow and S&P up and the NASDAQ lower, but only by 40 points or so.

Gold and silver continue to recover as bond yields have slipped lower the past few days. Gold is holding small gains this morning around $4,178, and silver is bouncing in a range between $57.25 and $57.75.

The market remains difficult to decipher and trading volume has been down. It appears to be in a wait-and-see condition until the midterms, which runs counter to the usual activity during earnings seasons. Trading may pick up over the next two weeks, as they are the busiest on the calendar for reporting.

At the Close, Thursday, October 15, 2026:
Dow: 52,177.69, +556.21 (+1.08%)
NASDAQ: 26,713.03, +20.16 (+0.08%)
S&P 500: 7,744.06, +25.12 (+0.33%)
NYSE Composite: 24,066.65, +201.22 (+0.84%)

NASDAQ Posts Worst Decline in Four Months as AI Credit Implodes; September PPI Advances Beyond Expectations: Crude Oil Jumps; PMs Recovering

Two days into earnings season and all there is to show are losses across the major averages. This is not how the midterm game plan is supposed to work.

Things that matter may be beginning to unravel for the Republicans in their hopes to keep the "A-OK" narrative alive through Election Day, now less than three weeks off and early voting already begun in a handful of states, including Illinois, Michigan, California, Florida, and Pennsylvania.

It's difficult to believe Americans could be dumb enough to vote for the incumbents with inflation running red hot, gas prices through the roof, wars still unresolved in Ukraine and the Middle East and a party that seems only intent on getting re-elected.

“No one in this world, so far as I know — and I have searched the records for years, and employed agents to help me — has ever lost money by underestimating the intelligence of the great masses of the plain people” - H.L. Mencken, Baltimore Sun, September 18, 1926

It could happen that the Republican party maintains its slim margins in the House and Senate, but, only because the Democrats have put up candidates that are far inferior in many voting districts and states. It seems like no matter which party wins - and be assured, there are only two choices - the American people will lose because the reality is that there is only one party - the uniparty, as some like to call it - and Republicans and Democrats are nothing more than factions of the same tax, borrow, and spend federal behemoth.

The American people don't have a choice when it comes to voting, at least at the national level. Whichever party or candidate wins an election, campaign promises and moral integrity are lost the moment he or she steps into the Capitol building. The party controls the votes; the leviathan - to use a Hobbesian metaphor - controls the narrative. Nothing changes in Washington D.C. except the occasional role players. Senators and House Reps alike toe the government line. The behemoth swallows them all.

“The worship of the state is the worship of force. There is no more dangerous menace to civilization than a government of incompetent, corrupt, or vile men. The worst evils which mankind ever had to endure were inflicted by bad governments. The state can be and has often been in the course of history the main source of mischief and disaster.” ― Ludwig von Mises, Bureaucracy

The longer this system of overwhelming government control survives, the worse off will be the fates of millions of Americans. It's become routine for congress and whatever entity is occupying the White House to pass legislation the public is adamantly against. Wars are started without weighing the consequences. Infrastructure bills are little more than handouts to loyalists. The government exerts more control, leading to a point at which a large segment of the public becomes apathetic toward voting and government and begins to drift towards a more reckless level of anarchy, one that dismisses government laws and regulations as little more than impediments against their own goals to live in a just, honest society.

Eventually, as is the emerging state of play in Europe, the taxes, the surveillance, the limits on freedom and liberty become too much for the general public to bear and the leviathan government is perplexed that their "perfect" system of control no longer functions as planned. This is the future of America: a country balkanized by regions, sects, and beliefs, an incongruous mass without an underlying, unifying force, the government's promises seen as empty slogans, its power diminished by its own hubris. The process unfolding happens over decades. America is within 20 years of the need for radical change, maybe even closer than that, lest it completely lose its identity and world standing.

So, as Thursday's opening bell approaches, the pundits and blabbers in the finacial media continue to talk the good talk, all the while, the investor class is walking away. Stocks are already wildly overpriced and breadth in the market favors only a few of the more popular issues, and even those are under assault.

Wednesday saw the worst daily performance on the NASDAQ in Four months, fueled by a CPI reading that was worse than expectations and a meltdown of one of the AI darlings, Coreweave (CRWV), which lost 15% on the day and is down nearly 2/3rds since its all-time high in June, 2025. The company's business model is under scrutiny, its funding under assault. Coreweave's credit default swaps (CDS) blew out to over 1000 basis points. Other companies in the AI space such as Oracle and Softbank are seeing outsized moves in the costs to insure gainst default.

Bank stocks reporting third quarter earnings failed to provide a boost to the markets or even maintain recent levels. Now that inflation is seen as a clear and present danger, the other shoe - the AI funding bust - is dropping.

Thursday morning, these stocks reported for the third quarter:
U.S. Bancorp (USB) - EPS beat, revenue miss, stock flat pre-market
Charles Schwab (SCHW) - EPS beat, revenue miss, shared down 2%
PNC (PNC) - EPS beat, revenue miss, shares flat
Bank of New York Mellon (BNY) - Top and bottom beat, shares higher by 2-3%
Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM) - Top and bottom beat, shares off by 2-3%
Ericsson (ERIC) - Huge EPS, revenue beat, shares higher by 11%

These results failed to move the market needle, especially after the BLS reported September PPI was came in like a house afire:

The Producer Price Index for final demand increased 1.3 percent in September, seasonally adjusted, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Final demand prices moved up 0.5 percent in August and 0.2 percent in July. (See table A.) The September increase is the largest advance since rising 1.7 percent in March 2022. On an unadjusted basis, the index for final demand climbed 6.3 percent for the 12 months ended in September, the largest 12-month increase since moving up 6.4 percent in December 2022.

In September, prices for final demand goods rose 2.6 percent, and the index for final demand services advanced 0.8 percent.

Prices for final demand less foods, energy, and trade services moved up 0.5 percent in September after increasing 0.3 percent in August. For the 12 months ended in September, the index for final demand less foods, energy, and trade services rose 5.0 percent.

Those numbers are wildly inflationary, since producer prices eventually feed into consumer prices. Most companies aren't about to keep prices down and absorb margin losses. No matter how the PPI is viewed, it's possibly to be enough for the Fed to move rates higher at its October 27-28 FOMC meeting. There's now a 33% chance the Fed will raise rates at the October meeting and a 92% chance of a rate hike at the December 9 meeting, with a 29% chance the hike will be 50 basis points, to 4.25-4.50%, according to the CME's FedWatch tool.

Paradoxically, retail sales zoomed 0.8% higher in September, with gasoline purchases crowding out other consumer staples and discretionary purchases. The number is obviously not inflation-adjusted, signaling stress on consumers, especially in low and middle income groups.

All of this underscores the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, both of which are again spiraling out of control.

With the opening bell 30 minutes away, Dow futures are up 235, NASDAQ futures are down 384, S&P futures are down 24 points. WTI crude oil has broken out of its recent range and is now trading above $95/barrel. Brent crude has been well over $100/barrel for the better part of the past six weeks.

Gold and silver continue to recover after Wednesday's bloodletting.

Doesn't look very rosy, does it?

At the Close, Wednesday, October 14, 2026:
Dow: 51,621.48, -48.62 (-0.09%)
NASDAQ: 26,692.87, -511.53 (-1.88%)
S&P 500: 7,718.94, -86.51 (-1.11%)
NYSE Composite: 23,865.42, -119.58 (-0.50%)

September CPI Unacceptably High; Bank Stocks Delivering Bad News; Futures Slide as Midterm Plans Unravel

Kicking off third quarter earnings season Tuesday with the usual bold profit announcements from JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs, expectations for market gains were given an added boost when United Health (UNH) chimed in with a strong quarterly report.

Because all three companies are components of the Dow 30, stock futures on the Dow climbed more than 400 points prior to the opening bell.

That was all well and good, but things seemed to go a bit haywire once the cash market opened. Instead of the Dow being bid higher and higher, the world’s most widely-watched index stalled at the opening high, and spent the rest of the session meandering along, just below the unchanged line. With early gains eviscerated within the first half hour of trading, disappointment ran deep.

JP Morgan ended the day down less than one percent. Goldman Sachs finished with a loss of 1.34%. Only United Health survived with gains for the day, up 1.98 points (0.52%).

Perhaps the plans to have stocks price higher on Tuesday was a bit too ambitious given the already-extreme pricing for stocks, not just in the tech sector, but just about everywhere among the most actives. In JP Morgan's case, the reported numbers fell short of estimates, which ran contrary to the pre-midterms operations (PMO™). Goldman Sachs had no excuse, reporting beats on both top and bottom lines, other than profit taking.

It's not a coincidence that bank stocks lead off each earnings season. The accounting games played by the big money banks are legendary, their statements largely about as clear-cut as a mud hole, but, as a group, they almost always deliver positive results, offering to investors the perception of an overall growing, robust economy, led by the banks that serve as the foundation of American enterprise.

After Tuesday's rout, scratch that. The reality to which the wisened investors on Wall Street have awakened is that major banks are black holes of depository debt, sketchy loans and even sketchier accounting practices. Bank of America (BAC) opened Wednesday's pre-market action by announcing Q3 profit falling 17% on a $1.2B penalty for anti-money-laundering activity and slower trading activity. Put in simpler terms, BofA was duly engaged in money laundering, got caught and shareholders are paying the price. BAC stock is down seven percent prior to the opening bell.

In addition to Bank of America, these companies also reported Q3 results Wednesday morning:
Morgan Stanley (MS) - top, bottom beat, shares down 3% pre-market
BlackRock (BLK) - Huge EPS and revenue beat, stock up over two percent pre-market
State Street (STT) - EPS beat, revenue miss results in 9% slide
ASML (ASML) - Earnings beat, revenue miss, shares down two percent
Progressive Insurance (PGR) - shares off six percent pre-market

Additionally, Wells Fargo (WFC) missed top and bottom, sending share down 1-2 percent. Citigroup (C) topped estimates but is down 1.5% heading toward the opening bell.

Maybe the bank stocks aren't all that pristine and investable. Understanding that they serve as the foundation of American enterprise and at the whims of government and big money interests labels them as some of the most corrupt companies on the planet, responsible for all manner of crimes and misdemeanors, from money-laundering to funding for enterprises set up to fail after seed investors extract profits. Lately, the retail banks (BAC, JPM, WFC, C) have been covering their tracks by under-reporting loan loss provisions. With consumers and small businesses stretched to the edge of survivability, credit usage has surged - even at rates of 10-20-30% - and bankruptcy filings are on the rise. The banks haven't disclosed much of what's happening underneath the hood, and many are exposed to credit defaults on commercial real estate and the AI hyperscaler build-out.

Wednesday also had a nasty surprise in September CPI, delivered an hour prior to the open:

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 0.6 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis in September after rising 0.4 percent in August, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over the last 12 months, the all items index increased 3.7 percent before seasonal adjustment.

The index for gasoline rose 9.1 percent in September, accounting for over half of the monthly all items increase. The energy index increased 5.2 percent over the month following a 2.1-percent increase in August. The shelter index rose 0.4 percent in September after rising 0.3 percent in August. The index for food was unchanged in September, as the index for food away from home increased 0.2 percent and the index for food at home fell 0.1 percent.

The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.3 percent in September, as it did in August. Indexes that increased over the month include recreation, used cars and trucks, education, airline fares, medical care, and apparel. Conversely, the index for communication was among the small number of major indexes that decreased in September.

The all items index rose 3.7 percent for the 12 months ending September, a larger increase than the 3.4-percent increase reported for the 12 months ending in August. The all items less food and energy index rose 2.6 percent over the year, following a 2.4-percent increase over the 12 months ending August. The energy index increased 20.4 percent for the 12 months ending September. The food index increased 2.5 percent over the last year.

Futures took a serious nose-dive on the CPI news and have not recovered as the opening bell approaches. This is not going according to plan as the possibility of another rate hike by the Fed at the October 27-28 FOMC meeting comes into play.

Presently, the markets are behaving badly, as they should, given the current conditions. Reality strikes back.

At the Close, Tuesday, October 13, 2026:
Dow: 51,670.10, -180.45 (-0.35%)
NASDAQ: 27,204.38, -41.52 (-0.15%)
S&P 500: 7,805.45, -1.79 (-0.02%)
NYSE Composite: 23,985.00, -5.72 (-0.02%)

Stocks Flat for Columbus Day; United Health (UNH), JP Morgan (JPM), Goldman Sachs (GS) Boost Pre-Market with Solid 3rd Quarter Results

Editor's Note: While Money Daily strives to offer financial content in a timely manner, but there is no accounting for spotty internet service or non-loading pages from sources. We apologize for today's delayed and brief report. --FR

Stocks were little changed on Monday, awaiting the first of third quarter earnings reports from leading financial institutions on Tuesday.

Capital markets were closed for the Columbus Day holiday.

JP Morgan (JPM) delivered the usual boost, rising more than one percent prior to the open.

Goldman Sachs (GS) posted a third quarter revenue beat of 10% and delivered diluted EPS of $17.01 against an estimated $13.18. Net revenues were $18.68 billion compared to the estimated $16.89 billion.

Both companies are Dow components. As the opening bell approaches, futures are split, with Dow futures up more than 400 points, thanks largely to positive third quarter returns from United Health (UNH), up more than 4.5% in pre-market trading, along with gains from JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs.

WTI Crude Oil Futures continue to maintain prices in a range from $90-93/barrel. Gold and silver are diverging Tuesday morning, with gold higher, though still below $4,200 per ounce and silver retesting lows below $60/ounce.

This all ends badly once the midterms are complete.

At the Close, Monday, October 12, 2026:
Dow: 51,850.55, +195.60 (+0.38%)
NASDAQ: 27,245.90, -120.27 (-0.44%)
S&P 500: 7,807.24, -4.30 (-0.06%)
NYSE Composite: 23,990.73, +51.63 (+0.22%)