CNBC Business News Update - Market Midday: Stocks Higher, US Wants Greenland Without Force, Fed's Cook May Stay In Job 1/21/26

Episode Date: January 21, 2026

From Wall Street to Main Street, the latest on the markets and what it means for your money. Updated regularly on weekdays, featuring CNBC expert analysis and sound from top business newsmakers. Anchored and reported by CNBC's Jessica Ettinger. 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 rebound for stocks after yesterday's sell-off. President Trump has taken military force off the table, but the U.S. is still seeking to take over Greenland. And the Dow is up 202 points, 4 tenths of a percent, United Healthcare shares leading it higher. The S&P 500 index still in the green, up 18. The NASDAQ is up three points. The major averages well off their early. higher highs. Invidia shares are up about three quarters of a percent. They had been up three percent earlier. President Trump at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. It's the United States alone that can protect this giant mass of land, this giant piece of ice, develop it and

improve it and make it so that it's good for Europe and safe for Europe and good for us. And that's the reason I'm seeking immediate negotiations to once again discuss the acquisition, of Greenland by the United States. Things are just uncertain right now for investors. They're unstable, said Charles Schwabes, Lizanne Saunders on CNBC. We are navigating sort of this constantly moving target. And I think you can apply that to geopolitics, to trade policy, to monetary policy. Instability is just a different animal.

And here's more from Capital Wealth, Malcolm Etheridge on CNBC. We're heading toward a midterm election where we're probably going to see. the president get a little more aggressive in making sure that he enacts the last few pieces of his political agenda before the balance in Congress gets upset. And so we're probably going to get a lot more of these like existential shocks, which probably create a number of opportunities for investors, gives you those buying opportunities throughout the entire year. IBM's CEO spoke with CNBC's Sarah Eisen in Davos about people around the world starting to avoid buying using American products and American brands.

rise of anti-American sentiment. Back on the table, I saw a Wall Street Journal article that the Danish consumers are avoiding U.S. products with an app, that sort of thing. I remain equally wary. If the anti-American sentiment becomes too high, that will be a big concern

to any company that is based out of the United States. IBM CEO Avrendkrishna on CNBC. Gold and a new record high again today, breaking $4,800 an ounce on the Greenland tariff threats. Natural gas prices are soaring up 20%.

And heating oil prices are at their highest now since Thanksgiving as an Arctic cold blast hits a large part of the U.S. Continuing into the weekend, heating demands expected to spike, and it's not just the north. A major ice storm is threatening Texas on Friday night, extending through the Deep South and the Carolinas over the weekend. Some believe Fed Governor Lisa Cook's job is safe based on arguments at the Supreme Court on Wednesday, over whether President Trump can just fire her without question. There were several reasons that the court was sort of skeptical of the government's argument here. Remember, the government is arguing that the president can remove a governor from the Federal Reserve. The president decides what cause is.

The president decides what process, if any, must be given to the person to answer his charges, and that the court cannot review the president's decision. So that was a pretty extreme place for the government to be. And that raised a lot of skepticism on the court. Former Federal Reserve Board General Counsel Scott Alvarez on CNBC. Jessica Eddinger, CNBC. Breaking earnings news. Market reaction this week on CNBC and streaming on CNBC Plus.