Stock Market Today: April 14, 2026 — Soft PPI Lifts Tech, Crude Cracks
A cooler-than-expected March PPI print and a sharp slide in crude on U.S.–Iran peace-talk optimism powered a tech-led rally, with the Nasdaq adding 1.2% as big-bank earnings opened Q1 reporting season.
The Day at a Glance
US stocks pushed higher Tuesday after March wholesale inflation came in roughly half what economists penciled in, while a sharp drop in oil pulled energy and inflation-sensitive names lower and let mega-cap tech run.
- SPY — S&P 500: 6,886.24, +68.86 (+1.0%)
- QQQ — Nasdaq Composite: 23,183.74, +280.84 (+1.2%)
- DIA — Dow Jones Industrial Average: 48,218.25, +301.68 (+0.6%)
- IWM — Russell 2000: 2,787.00, +11.90 (+0.43%)
Breadth was firm — advancers beat decliners roughly 2.8-to-1 on the NYSE — but the move was unmistakably a mega-cap story. Small caps lagged the tape despite the soft inflation print.
VIX, Yields, and the Dollar
- VIX: 19.12, down 0.6% on the day.
- GLD — Gold: $4,740.90/oz, +0.36%.
- USO — WTI crude: slid 7.9%, breaking below $100/bbl to its lowest level since March 25, as headlines pointed to renewed U.S.–Iran negotiations.
- 10-year Treasury yields trimmed 2–4 basis points across the curve in a muted bond-market response to the cool PPI print — traders were skeptical that the wholesale number would carry through into the Fed's preferred PCE gauge.
Sector Scorecard
Tech, consumer discretionary, and communication services led; energy and the defensives lagged. Confirmed S&P 500 sector closes:
| Sector | ETF | Day % |
|---|---|---|
| Technology | XLK | +1.60% |
| Financials | XLF | -1.15% |
| Consumer Staples | XLP | -1.30% |
| Health Care | XLV | -1.40% |
Energy (XLE) traded sharply lower in line with crude, with Exxon and Chevron each off roughly 2%. Seven of the eleven S&P 500 sectors closed in the red despite the headline index gains — index strength was concentrated in a handful of mega-cap tech and semis names.
Top 5 Single-Stock Movers
MU +9.2%. Micron led the semis on follow-through from sustained AI-memory pricing commentary, with HBM order momentum flagged by sell-side desks ahead of next month's print. The move dragged the broader memory complex higher.
F +4.5%. Ford rallied on a combination of cheaper crude (a tailwind for ICE-truck demand) and incremental positive read-throughs from supplier commentary. The move was the biggest single-day gain for the stock since February.
NVDA +3.8%. Nvidia caught a bid alongside Micron as the AI-infrastructure trade reasserted itself on a benign inflation tape. The name continues to set the tone for risk-on sessions.
WFC -4.3%. Wells Fargo reported Q1 EPS of $1.60 (vs. $1.58 expected) but revenue of $21.4B missed the $21.76B consensus, with net interest income at $12.1B undershooting the $12.3B bar. Loan book topped $1T for the first time after the Fed's asset-cap removal — but the NII miss carried the day.
XOM / CVX -2% each. The integrated majors led energy lower as WTI cracked $100. The bid that drove the sector through Q1 unwound on each headline pointing toward de-escalation in the Strait of Hormuz.
Macro & Policy
The session pivoted on the March PPI release. Headline producer prices rose 0.5% month-over-month, well under the 1.1% consensus, and core PPI printed at just 0.1% versus a 0.6% estimate. The internals were noisier than the headline: energy components jumped 8.5%, with gasoline up over 20% on war-driven crude pressure, while wholesale food fell 0.3% and the services component was flat.
Markets read the print as net-friendly for risk, but the bond-market reaction was telegraphed as cautious — the categories that feed the Fed's PCE gauge (notably airfares and select services) were less benign than the topline implied. Geopolitically, an early dip on news of breakdown in U.S.–Iran peace talks in Pakistan reversed after President Trump's comments suggested a deal was still on the table — a sequence that drove the morning's crude liquidation.
Earnings Highlights
JPM kicked off bank season with EPS of $5.94 (vs. $5.45 est.) on revenue of $50.54B (vs. $49.17B est.). Net income rose 13% YoY to $16.49B. FICC trading climbed 21% and investment-banking fees jumped 28% — Jamie Dimon flagged "an increasingly complex set of risks" despite calling the underlying economy resilient.
C delivered its best quarterly revenue in a decade: EPS $3.06 vs. $2.65, revenue $24.63B vs. $23.55B, with equities trading +39% and FICC +13% YoY.
JNJ posted Q1 adjusted EPS of $2.70 versus the $2.68 consensus — a thin beat that wasn't enough to lift the broader health care complex.
BLK and GS (which reported Monday) rounded out a generally strong start to financials season, even as the sector ETF closed lower on the day.
What's On Tap Next
Wednesday brings March retail sales, the Fed Beige Book, and the NAHB housing index. On the earnings tape, traders will focus on ASML — a key read on AI capex and China export-control headwinds — plus BAC, MS, ABT, PGR, and USB. Watch crude into the open: any reversal in Iran headlines would put XLE back in play and likely re-pressure the long-duration tech leadership that drove Tuesday's tape.