Stocks Settled After NASDAQ New High; Xi to Meet with Trump Wednesday; Gold, Silver Lower; WTI Trading Around $90/barrel

There was limited follow-through Tuesday after the NASDAQ closed at an all-time high on Monday and inched higher Tuesday. There didn't seem to be much conviction after President Trump sung his own praises at the UN General Assembly. The Dow lost ground while the S&P finished the day nearly unchanged.

There are rumors swirling about possible negotiations in the Middle East with Iran as the central focus, though Trump has already said that the war will be resolved after the midterms, so any reports are being taken with appropriate grains of salt. WTI crude oil fell to $90/barrel on Tuesday and appears to be holding at that level as trading approaches for Wednesday's session.

China’s president Xi is due to arrive in Washington for talks with Trump, though breakthroughs on any of the vital issues such as AI and rare earth minerals seem to be more wishful thinking from the U.S. side. As usual, the White House will frame the talks as "constructive", despite little actually being accomplished regarding trade, tariffs, or anything else.

There are no major economic drops this morning. Thursday will be more impactful, with New Home Sales and Building Permits for August and the usual weekly unemployment claims data.

Gold and silver are taking their lumps this morning after making gains overnight. Silver, which was as high as $67.57, is down to $64.95, while gold also has been sold off, settling in around $4300 per troy ounce.

Stock futures are tanking less than an hour before the opening bell. Dow futures are off 135 points; NASDAQ futures are down 78, and S&P futures are lower by eight points.

The NASDAQ has put in four straight sessions on the upside, though the other majors have not followed suit, especially the Dow, where dividend-bearing stocks have been negatively affected by the recent rate hike. Stocks cannot compete with treasury yields approaching five percent.

After Tuesday's boastful speech at the UN, President Trump will be looking for more ways to influence markets through the Xi visit. Markets seem to be waiting for some kind of development to push higher.

At the Close, Tuesday, September 22, 2026:
Dow: 51,863.69, -185.14 (-0.36%)
NASDAQ: 27,244.28, +122.18 (+0.45%)
S&P 500: 7,764.64, -0.06 (-0.00%)
NYSE Composite: 24,029.06, -57.60 (-0.24%)