CNBC Business News Update - Market Midday: Stocks Higher, Bitcoin At A 2 Month High, Gas Prices Are Lower This Week 4/14/26

Episode Date: April 14, 2026

The CNBC Business News Update with Jessica Ettinger features market numbers & news with CNBC expert analysis and sound from top business names. Updated throughout the business day. Visit https://www.cnbc.com/ for more. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

I'm Jessica Eddinger, CNBC. A midday look at the markets. Major averages all higher this afternoon. U.S. crude oil pulling back to about $92 a barrel on hope for a second round of peace talks between Iran and the U.S. The Dow up 289 points, about a half a percent. It's being led higher by shares of Amazon, which are up 3 percent today. The S&P 500 index is up just about 1 percent, 68 points. and the NASDAQ is up 375 points, 1.5%. Shears of Nvidia are up almost 3% this afternoon. Investors are looking ahead and maybe even past the war with Iran. Whenever the confidence levels are this low historically, forward returns are spectacular.

So once again, the market trades in the future. We're seeing the worst of that sentiment in my view. Morgan Stanley's Mike Wilson on CNBC. Bitcoin at its highest in more than two months. today, $76,000. That's its highest level since February 4th. Prices at the pump down from this same day last week. AAA says the national average for a gallon of regular is $4.11.3 below last Tuesday. Wholesale inflation rose in March, but much less than expected, considering the war has pushed energy prices higher. Consumer confidence at a record low. But Americans went out and

bought stuff in March even at higher prices. CNBC senior economics reporter Steve Leesman has the latest in the CNBC NRF retail monitor. Take a look at the year over year. The monitor shows some gathering strength actually for retail was spending up more than 7% compared to a year ago. Now, some of that's going to be inflation, a point or two higher from the higher inflation rate. But a bigger chunk is going to be real spending increases. These numbers could look different next month when the bill for gasoline prices rise, possibly taking away from discretion items. The question will be how much remains out there from the bigger tax refunds to offset this. Cruise ships run on diesel fuel, which is much more expensive since the beginning of the war with

Iran. But the CEO of Royal Caribbean says so far the war with Iran isn't making as much of a dent in costs as it could have. And the cruise lines making a big bet on wealthy travelers. We're 61% hedged for the year. So obviously we're going to take some of that impact as it relates to on the fuel price standpoint. What we watch out for is are we seeing changes in the consumer's behavior if they're being squeezed in terms of their discretionary spend? And what we continue to see from our customer is they've got great balance sheets, they've got great jobs, they're spending, and they're spending on travel experiences that we that we're providing. That's Royal Caribbean Cruise Line CEO Jason Liberty on CNBC.

FCC chair Brendan Carr speaking with CNBC Sarah Eisen today about the NFL and streaming services. The FCC regulates broadcast media, not the streamers. Americans have enjoyed sitting down after the day, turning on TV and very quickly, and usually for free, finding their favorite team playing. And that experience has become frustrating. They're having to sign up for different streaming services. So we're looking at this at the FCC. There is a sports broadcasting act, which gives NFL and others a unique antitrust exemption.

There's a question of whether are they extending beyond the scope of that antitrust exemption if they move too many games behind a paywall. On Wednesday's watch list, we get earnings from Bank of America, Morgan Stanley, Progressive Insurance, and J.B. Hunt Transport. Jessica Eddinger, CNBC. April 15th, financial experts, investors, and policymakers gather in D.C. for conversations on America's economy. CNBC's Invest in America Forum. Request an invite at CNBC Events.com slash invest. Thank you.