New York, May 16, 2026, 13:03 EDT
- U.S. markets shut for the weekend following Friday’s losses, which knocked the S&P 500 and Nasdaq below recent highs. The Nasdaq runs 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET on weekdays.
- S&P 500 managed to close up 0.1% for the week. The Dow slipped 0.2%. Nasdaq was lower by 0.1%. Russell 2000 fell 2.4%.
- Nvidia reports earnings next week, with big-box retailers and Fed minutes also on deck. Investors just saw choppy moves in oil and bond yields hit the market.
S&P 500’s seven-week advance is still intact heading into next week, but the rally lost steam late this week. Rising bond yields and a surge in oil prices cut into Wall Street’s run of record gains.
Market gains powered by AI shares and better-than-expected earnings stalled on Friday. Oil prices jumped, Treasury yields rose, and investors faced new questions over the Fed’s ability to ease rates.
S&P 500 lost 92.74 points, or 1.2%, landing at 7,408.50 on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 537.29 points, or 1.1%, to finish at 49,526.17. Nasdaq Composite fell 410.08 points, or 1.5%, closing at 26,225.14. Russell 2000, which tracks small caps, dropped 2.4% on the day and over the week.
S&P 500 and Nasdaq closed at new records Thursday, helped by tech strength. Nvidia jumped 4.4% on news its H200 chips got a green light for sale in China from the U.S. Other chip stocks lagged, with Qualcomm, Intel, and Micron down between 3.4% and 6.1%. The market had rallied more broadly in the prior session.
Traders keep talking about the rally. “Everybody’s asking the same question: how much longer does this rally go on?” Robert Pavlik, senior portfolio manager at Dakota Wealth, told Reuters on Thursday. Michael Monaghan at Founder ETFs called the U.S.-China talks “very high stakes meetings.” By Friday, that phrase followed the mood in markets. Reuters
By Friday it was less clear. Kenny Polcari, chief market strategist at Slatestone Wealth, said the market had “gotten way ahead of itself” and was now looking at bonds and the data. “Inflation remains sticky,” he said. Reuters
10-year Treasury yields moved up 13.8 basis points to 4.597%. The 30-year yield climbed 10.9 basis points, landing at 5.122%. A basis point is one-hundredth of a percentage point. U.S. crude settled up 4.2% at $105.42 a barrel. Brent crude gained 3.35% to $109.26. High energy prices kept inflation in view.
Inflation numbers this week moved sentiment lower. April CPI rose 0.6%, giving the annual pace its sharpest jump since 2021. Reuters reported energy goods were behind more than 40% of the increase. Kansas City Fed President Jeffrey Schmid called inflation the most “pressing risk” for the economy. Reuters
U.S. equity funds added $22.37 billion for the week ending May 13, the most in three weeks, but flows stayed mixed. Demand for chipmakers and strong earnings pushed gains. LSEG data from Reuters showed about 83% of 455 S&P 500 companies beat first-quarter profit expectations.
Nvidia gets its turn next, with the company set to report fiscal Q1 numbers Wednesday, May 20, at 5 p.m. ET. CFO Colette Kress is slated to put out written remarks before the call. Investors are watching to see if AI demand is still enough to power Nvidia’s run and influence other stocks in the sector.
Retailers are on deck with earnings next week. NYSE market strategists named Home Depot, Lowe’s, Target, TJX and Walmart, all reporting in the coming days. Their numbers will show if shoppers keep spending or are only managing bigger bills from inflation.
Fed minutes coming Wednesday. The central bank plans to post its April 28-29 FOMC meeting notes at 2 p.m. ET. The FOMC decides interest rates. Traders are watching for clues on how much inflation was on officials’ minds before Friday’s jump in yields pushed rate chatter higher.
Risks stand out. Oil up and higher yields may force investors to look again at expensive growth stocks, especially AI leaders that rallied hard. A bad quarter from Nvidia, another downbeat retail outlook, or hawkish Fed minutes could easily turn Friday’s drop into more than a pause.
