CNBC Business News Update - Market Open: Stocks Higher, President Trump Is Surprised Markets Are Holding Up, The President Will "Remember" Companies That Don't File For Tariff Refunds 4/21/26

Episode Date: April 21, 2026

CNBC Business News Update with Jessica Ettinger - market numbers and news featuring CNBC expert analysis and sound from top business names. 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, stocks higher out of the gate. After some modest losses yesterday, President Trump told CNBC this morning he's surprised the market made a comeback from its dive when the war began, saying he thought the Dow would be down at least 20 percent. Checking major averages, the Dow is up 276 points this morning a half percent. United Health shares leading it higher. They're soaring up 8 percent on strong. quarterly results. The S&P 500 index is up seven points. The NASDAQ up 13 points. Checking shares of NVIDIA, they're lower. They're down a half percent this morning. It's some level not surprising

that markets are looking through some of the noise at the stage. We've learned over the past couple weeks, even in the face of a shock of this scale, the U.S. economy can be relatively resilience, and that's, I think, the story at the core of markets right now. Black Rock's Mike Pyle on CNBC. It's day two that companies can file for Trump tariff refunds after the Supreme Court ruled they were illegally collected. President Trump telling CNBC he will remember the companies that decide not to ask for refunds. Here's the president with CNBC's Andrew Ross Sorkin this morning. Mr. President, there's a whole number of very large companies, including Apple and Amazon, that have not sought reimbursements yet for the tariffs.

from what I understand, part of the reason that they have waited is because there is a worry about, frankly, offending you. Would you find it offensive for them to try to collect a refund? I think it's brilliant if they don't do that. I actually think if they don't do that, they got to know me very well. I'm very honored by what you just said. If they don't do that, I'll remember them. Investors, closely watching the end of the ceasefire, which is supposed to be today between the U.S. and Iran. U.S. crude oil ticked lower for May, it's higher for June. Markets are, of course, watching very closely. The street of Hormuz remains functionally closed. We understand Vice President J.D. Vance will depart for Pakistan this morning.

President Trump's two-week ceasefire, of course, ends very soon, and the path to a deal right now remains deeply uncertain. CNBC's Dan Murphy and Abu Dhabi. President Trump wants the Fed to lower interest rates, which will make borrowing money cheaper. It'll stimulate business. That stimulus can also push inflation higher and the Fed may decide to wait on cutting rates. Trump's pick for the new Fed chair job is Kevin Warsh and the Senate Banking Committee hearing on his confirmation begins today. In the hearing, he's going to have to be non-committal and make clear in Congress that he has made no pre-commitments. As he said, views of elected officials are totally fine

and appropriate, and I think that's always been true. And he's going to have to realize, that he may go through a number of meetings where he gets criticized for not moving fast enough. I think he knows that. Goldman Sachs Vice Chairman Rob Kaplan, also the former Dallas Fed president on CNBC. Current Fed Chair Jay Powell's term is up May 15th, but the Warsh confirmation could be blocked by a senator who wants the Trump investigation into Powell dropped before allowing Warsh to move forward. Retail sales for March rose 1.7 percent from February. a price-driven increase. Consumers didn't buy more things. They paid higher prices, especially for gas. Jessica Eddinger, CNBC. You come to my show and you learn how to do stocks. Mad Money, Weeknight, 6 Eastern, CNBC.