Opening Comment — Monday, April 20, 2026
DJIA: 49,447.43, up 868.71
S&P 500: 7,126.06, up 84.78
NASDAQ: 24,468.48, up 365.78
Stocks lower to start off week
Stock futures are lower Monday morning as investors’ optimism faded following Iran continuing their closure of the Strait of Hormuz, citing the ongoing U.S. blockade of ships from Iranian ports, with the U.S. seizing one such ship over the weekend. Investors will also be looking forward to tomorrow’s release of March retail sales and pending home sales data, along with Thursday’s preliminary April purchasing managers’ indexes. As of 7:15 AM ET, the Dow is decreasing 0.6%, while the S&P 500 is down 0.5%. The Nasdaq 100 is also falling 0.5% relative to fair value on the GLOBEX.
U.S. equities were higher on Friday as markets had been optimistic regarding the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and potential peace talks. The Dow was up 1.8%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 1.5% and hit a new record closing level of 24468.48. The S&P 500 increased 1.2% and set a new record closing level of 7126.06, with nine of 11 sectors finishing in positive territory. The Consumer Discretionary sector was the top performer, rising 2.0%, while the Energy sector was the bottom performer, falling 2.9%.
Across the pond, European stocks are lower in mid-day trading as Rightmove’s measure of British house prices for April increased by 0.8% month-over-month (MOM) and decreased by 0.9% year-over-year (YOY). Meanwhile, Germany’s March Producer Price Index (PPI) increased 2.5% MOM and showed deflation easing more than expected to 0.2% YOY.
Overnight in Asia, stocks were higher as Japan’s Tertiary (service) Industry Index showed a decline of 0.4% MOM in February, compared to the prior month’s revised increase of 2.0%. China’s one- and five-year loan prime rates for April were left steady at 3.00% and 3.50%, respectively.
In FOREX trading, the U.S. dollar is slightly higher following the latest Iran war developments.
Over in the commodity pits, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil is 5.6% higher at $88.56/barrel, partially reversing Friday’s declines.
In the metals complex, gold is 0.7% lower at $4,796.60/ounce following a strengthening U.S. dollar.