S&P 500 Rises as Strong Inflation Data Bolsters Rate-Hike Expectations
Wall Street closed higher on Friday, driven by strong consumer price data that reinforced expectations of a Federal Reserve rate hike. The S&P 500 rose 0.86%, the Nasdaq gained 0.96%, and the Dow climbed nearly 1%. Strong performances were seen in AI server makers like Dell (up 12%) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise, while Oracle's shares dipped despite strong quarterly results. The U.S. consumer price index accelerated last month due to rising gasoline prices, increasing pressure on the Fed for tighter monetary policy. According to CME’s FedWatch tool, there is now a nearly 90% probability of a rate hike at next week’s meeting—up from 72% just one day earlier. Despite recent volatility and concerns over AI infrastructure spending and inflation, the S&P remains up 12% in 2026. The CBOE Volatility Index fell to 15.88 as market fear eased.
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Topics: AI stocks Federal Reserve inflation data interest rates S&P 500