Stock market today: Live updates
Traders work at the New York Stock Exchange on Feb. 18, 2026.
NYSE
The Dow Jones Industrial Average pulled back on Friday after a series of economic data painted a picture of weak growth and sticky inflation, while traders waited for a possible Supreme Court decision on President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
The 30-stock Dow fell 166 points, or 0.3%. The S&P 500 traded around the flatline, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.2%, buoyed by a 2% gain in Alphabet shares.
With Friday’s move, the Dow is heading for a 0.5% loss in the period. The S&P 500 is on pace for modest gains this week, up 0.4%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq is set to snap a five week losing streak — it is up nearly 1%.
Traders received a downbeat view on growth of the U.S. economy, as gross domestic product increased 1.4% for the fourth quarter. That was far below the 2.5% gain that economists polled by Dow Jones had anticipated. The 4.4% advance in the third quarter sharply surpassed estimates.
The record-breaking government shutdown is partly to blame, according to the Commerce Department. That stoppage, which took place through the first half of the fourth quarter, took off roughly 1 percentage point from economic growth, the department estimated.
In addition to the GDP data, the personal consumption expenditures price index report — the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge — showed that inflation held steady in December. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, core PCE came in at 3%, in line with expectations but still well above the Fed’s 2% target.
Fed policymakers are divided between officials who are worried about supporting the labor market and those who are more concerned about inflation. Minutes from the January Fed meeting indicate that some officials will need to see more evidence that inflation is cooling before voting for additional interest rate cuts.
Friday may also bring a highly anticipated Supreme Court decision, as many on Wall Street expect a ruling on the legality of Trump’s tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. Traders mostly believe the stock market will react positively if the duties are knocked down, even with expectations the White House will use other means to reapply them at another time. The Supreme Court, which doesn’t divulge beforehand the cases it will rule on, also has decision days scheduled for next Tuesday and Wednesday.
Alternative asset manager stocks continued their tough week on Friday amid growing concern about losses tied to private credit, especially with loans in the troubled software sector. Shares of Blue Owl Capital, which this week gated redemptions from one of its private credit funds, dropped another 5% on Friday. Shares of Blackstone and Ares Management, other big players in private credit, dropped 3% apiece.
—CNBC’s Jeff Cox contributed reporting.
