Weekly Market Performance — September 18, 2026

LPL Research provides its Weekly Market Performance for the week of September 14, 2026. U.S. stocks finished a choppy week little changed, as investors navigated a surge in oil prices above $100 per barrel, renewed geopolitical tensions, and the Federal Reserve’s first rate hike since 2023. While markets initially struggled to gain traction amid higher oil prices and following the Fed’s hawkish messaging, stocks trimmed losses later in the week on clarity that policymakers remain committed to controlling price pressures. International equities were mixed amid rising yields, higher energy costs, and geopolitical uncertainty, while U.S. bond markets ended little changed after swinging between gains and losses. 

Stock Index Performance

S&P 500 Index Sectors

Fixed Income and Commodities

Source: LPL Research, Bloomberg 9/18/26 @ 3:12 p.m. ET
Disclosures: Indexes are unmanaged and cannot be invested in directly.

U.S. and International Equities

U.S. Equities: The S&P 500 ended the week not too far off from where it began after a choppy week of trading. Stocks were on the defensive early this week as oil prices rose back above $100 per barrel for the first time since May, as a postponed meeting between Gulf nations fanned supply and inflation worries. Saudi Aramco closing its East-West pipeline (a critical bypass for the Strait of Hormuz) following drone strikes around the Red Sea further dampened risk sentiment. Simultaneously, investors geared up for the September meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), where policymakers fulfilled expectations of a quarter-point rate hike in a unanimous vote Wednesday afternoon. Stocks slipped following the first hike since 2023 as Federal Reserve (Fed) Chair Warsh hawkishly framed the rate hike as removing a dose of accommodation and providing support to the committee’s predominant focus of returning inflation to the 2% target. Nonetheless, stocks posted a relief rally on Thursday on the newfound clarity that the Fed will stay on top of the curve. 

Plus, the artificial intelligence (AI) trade was broadly supportive despite facing some up-and-down trading. Shares struggled amid calls to slow investments before chipmakers rebounded over the latter half of the week on dip buying and some positive AI updates, including a data center deal between Generac (GNRC) and Amazon (AMZN), and positive deal and capital raise commentary for CoreWeave (CRWV).  

International Equities: Across the pond, European stocks settled lower after reversing week-to-date gains in sharply lower Friday trading. Stocks clawed back into positive territory after being weighed down by higher oil prices, but tensions between Europe and Russia took center stage to end the week after the Kremlin seized the assets of Nestle’s Russian business. At the same time, energy supply worries dampened sentiment after Saudi Aramco informed two European refining customers that they will not receive crude allocations next month following the recent attacks in the Red Sea. Geographically, the U.K. outperformed after the Bank of England held rates steady, supported by a drop in Gilt yields on scrapped long-dated bond sales related to an overhaul of its quantitative tightening program. 

Major Asian markets finished mixed this week amid a growing list of macro headwinds. Rising global yields, higher oil prices, hawkish central banks, and uncertainty over the pace of AI development weighed on most of the region. South Korea was unable to recover from earlier losses despite a late week chipmaker rally, while sentiment across greater China was dampened by weak domestic consumption, fixed investment, and property price data. Japan was among outperformers, lifted by post-Fed decision relief buying and a weaker yen, with the currency sliding despite the Bank of Japan delivering a 0.25% rate hike as markets focused on the number of dissenters opposing tighter monetary policy increased to two. Taiwan led gains on the late-week chipmaker rally. 

Fixed Income, Currency, and Commodity Markets

Fixed Income: Core bonds, as measured by the Bloomberg Aggregate Index (Agg) were little changed this week. The Agg swung between gains and losses over the last five days as inflationary dynamics propelled the 10-year yield to close above 5.0% for the first time since 2007 as bond market investors digested a rally in oil prices against the backdrop of inflation remaining well above central banker’s targets. At the same time, bond markets geared up for the September Fed meeting, where Fed Chair Kevin Warsh and committee’s rate hike and hawkish tilted presser spurred a rise in Treasury yields. From there, Treasuries churned as Thursday’s dip in crude shored up renewed confidence in the Fed’s ability to tackle sticky inflation before yields resumed their climb to end the week on stoked wagers for additional policy tightening before year-end.  

Commodities and Currencies: The broader commodity complex was little changed Friday afternoon, pulling back to the flatline from mid-week peaks. Crude oil trading was top of mind this week as West Texas Intermediate (WTI) held above $100 per barrel after touching a four-month high of $106 intraday on Tuesday. Commodity investors faced volatile headlines around the Saudi East-West pipeline, highlighted by the critical Strait of Hormuz alternative being shuttered as a result of drone strikes sending prices higher before reports that Saudi Aramco stated it may come back online within days. Nonetheless, losses were limited after the oil and gas giant stated it will not provide crude allocations to two European refiners next month, while satellite imagery indicated that three (rather than the initially reported two) pumping stations were damaged along the East-West pipeline following the recent attacks. Gasoline prices rose over 5%. Outside of energy, gold aimed to climb back near $4,400/ounce, while silver prices also settled higher. In currencies, the dollar strengthened as a result of Wednesday’s Fed rate hike, with some additional support from traders placing downward pressure on the yen after the Bank of Japan’s split vote to tighten monetary policy. 

Economic Weekly Roundup

More Hawkish Than Expected: Key Takeaways from Wednesday’s Rate Decision

• The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) unanimously voted to increase rates by 0.25% on Wednesday, with updated forecasts implying there’s another hike coming later this year.  
• If the economy keeps up like it has, the Fed is telling us that we may not see a cut until 2028.  
• Economic growth projections were revised higher for the balance of 2026 and for 2027. We could see the economy accelerate and grow 2.4% in 2027. 
• Labor markets are expected to stay tight with unemployment lower than expected. Officials think the unemployment rate will stay at 4.1% for the next several years. 
• Since supply constraints remain a big factor, core inflation was revised higher to 3.4% for the full year. On a monthly basis, we expect it could hit 2.9% for December if the oil markets settle down.   

Bottom Line: Fed Chair Warsh and the rest of the committee are building a strong reputation through their laser focus on defeating inflation. Hawkish overtones were present throughout the latest Summary of Economic Projections, and Warsh’s press conference. Given the current economic circumstances, the committee delivered what was needed, and markets are handling it remarkably well. Going forward, the inflation debate will likely center on the magnitude of improvement as geopolitical conflicts wane. 

The Week Ahead

The following economic data is slated for the week ahead:    

• Monday: Chicago Fed National Activity Index (Aug) 
• Tuesday: ADP Weekly Employment Change (Sep 5), Philadelphia Fed Non-Manufacturing Activity (Sep), Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index and Business Conditions (Sep) 
• Wednesday: MBA Mortgage Applications (Sep 18), S&P Global U.S. Manufacturing, Services, and Composite PMIs (Sep preliminary) 
• Thursday: Current Account Balance (2Q), Initial Jobless Claims (Sep 19), Continuing Claims (Sep 12), New Home Sales (Aug), Kansas City Fed Manufacturing Activity (Sep), Building Permits (Aug final) 
• Friday: Durable Goods Orders (Aug preliminary), Capital Goods Orders and Shipments (Aug preliminary), University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index (Sep final), Kansas City Fed Services Activity (Sep), Bloomberg U.S. Economic Survey (Sep)