Financial Markets Wall Street

President Donald Trump promised that 2026 would be a bumper year for economic growth. Instead it's kicked off with job losses, rising gasoline prices and more uncertainty about America’s future. In his recent State of the Union address, Trump said "the roaring economy is roaring like never before.” The latest batch of data on jobs, gasoline prices and the stock market suggests otherwise. There's a gap between the boom that Trump has predicted and the results he's produced. And that could set the tone in this year’s midterm elections as he tries to defend Republican majorities in the House and Senate.

U.S. stocks rose following a remarkable reversal, as oil prices went from their highest prices since 2022 back below $90 per barrel. The S&P 500 dropped as much as 1.5% Monday morning before flipping to a gain of 0.8% at the end of the day’s trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average clawed back a plunge of nearly 900 points to rise nearly 240, while the Nasdaq composite climbed 1.4%. They’re the latest hour-to-hour swings to pummel financial markets because of uncertainty about just how high oil prices will go and how long they will stay there because of the war with Iran.

U.S. stocks held steadier as Wall Street waited for the next signal on when the war with Iran may end. The S&P 500 dipped 0.2% Tuesday, a day after its latest wild swings caused by extreme moves in the oil market. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 34 points, and the Nasdaq composite edged higher by less than 0.1%. Oil prices remained sharply below their peaks hit the day before. They had plunged from nearly $120 per barrel toward $90 late Monday on hopes for a quick end to the war. Stocks rose in Asia and Europe in their first chance to trade after that fall for oil prices.