CPI Data Sets the Tone for the Weekly Close 11/09/2026
Market Wrap
U.S. stocks fell for a fourth straight session on Thursday as oil surged above $100 a barrel, intensifying concerns that the prolonged U.S.-Iran conflict could keep inflation elevated and complicate the Federal Reserve's policy outlook.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 317 points, or 0.6%, to 52,064.10. The S&P 500 declined 0.6% to 7,591.70, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.7%.
Oil remained the dominant driver of market sentiment. West Texas Intermediate crude jumped 6.7% to settle at $102.48 a barrel as the U.S.-Iran conflict entered its seventh month and fears of further disruptions to Middle East energy supplies intensified.
The surge in crude spilled into the bond market, pushing the 10-year Treasury yield above 4.95% — its highest level since October 2023 — as investors priced in the risk that higher energy costs could keep inflation stubbornly high.
Technology offered pockets of strength despite the broader selloff. Alphabet (GOOGL) and Microsoft (MSFT) finished modestly higher, while Apple (AAPL) surged 3.6% following the launch of its first foldable iPhone.
Thursday's inflation data did little to ease concerns. August producer prices rose 0.4% from the previous month and 5.4% from a year earlier, reinforcing the market's focus on persistent price pressures.
Attention now turns to Friday's consumer price index, the final major inflation test before next week's Federal Reserve meeting. The CPI reading could prove decisive in determining whether policymakers keep rates unchanged or move ahead with another increase.
Oracle Beats Estimates as AI Cloud Growth Accelerates
Oracle (ORCL) shares rose about 4% in extended trading Thursday after the software giant beat quarterly expectations and signaled that growth could accelerate as demand for AI infrastructure continues to surge.
Fiscal first-quarter revenue jumped nearly 30% from a year earlier to $19.35 billion, above the $19.14 billion consensus. Adjusted earnings came in at $1.92 per share, comfortably ahead of the $1.74 expected.
Cloud remained the standout. Cloud revenue surged 62% to $11.61 billion, while cloud infrastructure revenue more than doubled to $7.4 billion, both exceeding Wall Street forecasts. Remaining performance obligations reached $664 billion, also well above expectations, after Oracle signed more than $30 billion of additional AI contracts during the quarter.
Growth could accelerate further. Oracle expects fiscal second-quarter revenue to rise between 30% and 34%, with adjusted earnings of $1.85 to $1.93 per share.
The AI expansion is coming at a significant cost. Capital spending jumped to $28.5 billion from $8.5 billion a year earlier, while free cash flow fell to negative $5.4 billion and total debt reached $125 billion as Oracle rapidly expands its data-center capacity.
For fiscal 2027, Oracle now expects at least $90 billion in revenue and adjusted earnings of $8.10 per share, slightly above Wall Street estimates.
Despite the strong quarter, Oracle shares were down about 22% for the year through Thursday's close, leaving investors focused on whether rapid AI-driven cloud growth can ultimately justify the company's aggressive infrastructure spending.
Stocks on the Move
- Oracle (ORCL): Shares jumped more than 4% after the software giant topped fiscal first-quarter expectations. Adjusted earnings came in at $1.92 per share on $19.35 billion in revenue, while cloud infrastructure revenue more than doubled to $7.4 billion, also beating forecasts.
- Adobe (ADBE): Shares slipped 2% after the software company issued current-quarter guidance broadly in line with Wall Street expectations. Adobe sees adjusted earnings of $6.30 to $6.35 per share on revenue of $6.80 billion to $6.85 billion.
- Copart (CPRT): Shares surged nearly 8% after fourth-quarter revenue of $1.15 billion edged past expectations. The vehicle-auction company also agreed to acquire digital automotive marketplace ACV in a deal valued at roughly $1.9 billion.
- RH (RH): Shares gained 6% after second-quarter revenue of $922 million topped estimates. The home-furnishings retailer also projected full-year revenue growth of 5.5% to 7%, with the midpoint coming in above Wall Street expectations.
Watchlist: ORCL, ADBE, CPRT, DOCU, RH, USO, MSTR, AMD, AAPL, TSLA, SPCX, KR
Key Economic Events Today
Economic Data (EST)
- 08:30 AM — USD Core CPI, CPI
- 10:00 AM — USD Consumer Sentiment
- 10:00 AM — USD Inflation Expectations
- 02:00 PM — USD Federal Budget Balance
Earnings
Before Market Open: Kroger Company (KR), Cheetah Mobile (CMCM)
