CNBC Business News Update - Market Open: Stocks Higher, But Indexes Lower For The Year, US Crude Oil Price Falls 3/13/26

Episode Date: March 13, 2026

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I'm Jessica Eddinger, CNBC. Wall Street and the Green this morning out of the gate as the major averages are bouncing off of yesterday's losses. The Dow is up 301 points. That's up a half a percent. It's being led higher by shares of United Health this morning. They're up 2%. The S&P 500 index up 52 points. That's 8 tenths of a percent. The NASDAQ is up 190 points, 8 tenths of a percent. InVIDIA shares are up 1.3 percent. this morning. The indexes, however, have all erased this year's gains. They're lower for the year. Investors are hopeful that the U.S. waiver allowing Russia to sell oil to the globe may ease oil prices a bit. That is happening. U.S. crude down to about $92 a barrel this morning. It was around $60 a barrel for most of January. In February, as Americans enjoyed lower prices at the pump. But gas prices went up again overnight.

AAA says the national average for a gallon of regular. Now $3.63. As inflation-weary consumers have seen gas go up about 65 cents a gallon since the first U.S. attack on Iran two weeks ago tonight. Four weeks ago, the national average for gas was below $3 a gallon. Stockbroker.com's director of research, Jessica Inskip, spoke with CNBC's Contessa Brewer. I filled up my car and I paid 60 cents more week to week for the gas in my. car. I agree with you. I even paid attention to the pump as well as I fill up my my car. And so when it's hitting consumers' pockets, we pay more attention to that. What is really concerning to me, though,

the consumer is absolutely constrained at this point. So feeling something at the pump is going to have a much, much bigger impact. PCE inflation for January rose a little less than it did in December. The personal consumption expenditures report showed that year over year, though, when you take out volatile food, and energy prices, inflation rose in January, more than it did in January of last year. If we look at year over year, comes in at 3.1, 110 hotter than the rearview mirror. 3.1, the highest since March of 24. That's CNBC's Rick Santelli. Here's CNBC Senior Economics Reporter Steve Leesman with a take. Yeah, that was a big shocker to me. What we care about here, guys, we care about what the economy was before we're heading into this new

where we figure out what the economy will be with these higher oil prices. Inflation by the Fed's preferred metric remains high, remains above target, up near 3%. Former Trump trade official Joe Livornia tells CNBC the economy will likely take a hit from the war in the Middle East. The biggest issue, though, as you know, is what's happening in commodity markets and energy because it takes what I believe is a very fundamentally solid economy. It's now cast doubt on it because there's nothing that will take liquidity away from households faster than higher gas and oil prices. U.S. economic growth in the fourth quarter of last year was

revised dramatically down, but there was a government shutdown in that time. Durable goods orders were roughly flat from December to January after a drop in December. These are orders for things made to last a long time, like washing machines or cars. New in theaters tonight, Universal's drama, romance, reminders of him and A-24's horror sci-fi thriller. undertone Jessica Eddinger, CNBC. The best of the PGA tool. The Players Championship, live on Golf Channel.