US close: Stocks fall as PPI data, Iran tensions hit sentiment

27th Feb 2026 23:48

(Sharecast News) - US stocks finished firmly in the red on Friday as an unexpected acceleration in wholesale inflation hit sentiment, along with rising geopolitical tensions overseas.

The Dow finished 1.2% lower, while the S&P 500 slipped 0.6% and the Nasdaq fell 0.8%.

"Most global stock indices were jittery ahead of the weekend with a US attack on Iran looming," said Axel Rudolph, chief technical analyst at IG.

"US wholesale prices rising more than expected also weighed on US indices which declined for a second session in a row as investors reconsidered positions on major AI infrastructure companies following Nvidia's earnings."

The headline producer price index rose at by 0.5% over the month of January, following a 0.4% gain in December, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, coming in well ahead of the 0.3% increased expected by economists. Core PPI inflation, which strips out volatile food and energy prices, picked up to a month-on-month rate of 0.8% from 0.6%, compared with the 0.3% consensus estimate.

Over the full year, core wholesale prices were up 3.6%, while the headline index rose 2.9%, both running ahead of the Federal Reserve's 2% inflation target and underscoring persistent price pressures in the US economy.

Elsewhere on the macro front, the Institute for Supply Management's Chicago purchasing managers index increased to 57.7 in February, up from a reading of 54 in January and ahead of expectations for a modest decline to 52.8.

Finally, US construction spending increased by 0.3% month-on-month in December, according to delayed figures from the Census Bureau, following a 0.2% decrease in November, in line with expectations.

Meanwhile, WTI crude jumped 3.2% to $67.29 a barrel on the back of fears of a possible US strike against Iran as talks between the two sides failed to result in an agreement over Tehran's nuclear and missile programmes. The UK on Friday pulled staff from its embassy in Tehran, while China, India and Canada told their citizens to leave Iran with immediate effect, as speculation builds about the potential for imminent US action.

Market movers

Nvidia fell another 4%, following Thursday's 5% drop as investors continued to take profits after an underwhelming quarterly earnings report from the chip giant.

The company was back in headlines on Friday after the news it had invested $30bn in ChatGPT maker OpenAI as part of a $110bn fundraising by the AI titan. Amazon, which invested $50bn in the funding round, gained 1%.

Netflix surged 14% after walking away from its offer to buy Warner Bros Discovery, leaving Paramount Skydance as the likely winner in the long running battle for the iconic Hollywood studio.

The streaming giant refused to increase its $83bn, $27.75-per-share offer after Warner Bros said Paramount's latest $31-per-share bid was superior. Paramount Skydance jumped 21% on the news, while WBD fell 2%.

Banking peers Barclays, Jefferies, Wells Fargo and Apollo Global were hit by the collapse of Market Financial Solutions. The four banks are reportedly among the UK mortgage provider's lenders.

Dow Jones - Risers

Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $121.94 3.79%

Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $30.24 2.78%

Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $50.01 2.56%

Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $388.16 2.38%

Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $288.39 2.31%

Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $165.38 2.11%

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $245.14 2.04%

McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $340.09 1.95%

Home Depot Inc. (HD) $375.93 1.50%

Chevron Corp. (CVX) $184.05 1.41%

Dow Jones - Fallers

American Express Co. (AXP) $313.52 -7.88%

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $890.40 -7.47%

Apple Inc. (AAPL) $264.18 -3.70%

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $392.74 -3.33%

Nike Inc. (NKE) $62.49 -2.77%

Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $192.31 -2.35%

JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $298.72 -1.90%

Intel Corp. (INTC) $45.61 -1.79%

Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $739.78 -1.34%

Boeing Co. (BA) $227.04 -0.82%

S&P 500 - Risers

DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $14.68 14.37%

Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $96.24 14.29%

Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $134.46 10.91%

Apache Corp. (APA) $30.37 10.56%

AES Corp. (AES) $17.33 6.34%

Autodesk Inc. (ADSK) $245.87 6.32%

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. (JBHT) $233.41 4.98%

IQVIA Holdings Inc. (IQV) $170.53 4.79%

VeriSign Inc. (VRSN) $227.94 4.76%

Diamondback Energy Inc. (FANG) $174.08 4.61%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Apartment Investment & Management Co. (AIV) $4.32 -23.97%

Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (BFH) $72.29 -10.61%

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (JEF) $45.85 -9.31%

United Airlines Holdings Inc (UAL) $106.30 -9.25%

American Express Co. (AXP) $313.52 -7.88%

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $890.40 -7.47%

Lincoln National Corp. (LNC) $34.46 -6.97%

Perrigo Company plc (PRGO) $13.68 -6.84%

Delta Airlines Inc. (DAL) $66.47 -6.82%

Alaska Air Group Inc. (ALK) $53.09 -6.69%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $14.68 14.37%

Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $96.24 14.29%

Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $134.46 10.91%

Autodesk Inc. (ADSK) $245.87 6.32%

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. (JBHT) $233.41 4.98%

Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI) $21.94 4.10%

Verisk Analytics Inc. (VRSK) $207.57 3.93%

eBay Inc. (EBAY) $90.86 3.91%

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $496.83 3.59%

Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD) $148.95 3.19%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Qvc Group Inc Series A (QVCGA) $2.97 -9.75%

Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $177.19 -6.58%

American Airlines Group (AAL) $13.07 -5.97%

Synopsys Inc. (SNPS) $414.00 -4.51%

Workday, Inc. (WDAY) $133.76 -3.91%

Apple Inc. (AAPL) $264.18 -3.70%

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $392.74 -3.33%

Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $412.37 -2.87%

Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $372.30 -2.73%

Paypal Holdings Inc (PYPL) $46.21 -2.73%