US Stocks Flat After Benign Inflation Data

Wall Street moves sideways as consumer price index rises less than expected in December

Published on Feb. 13, 2026

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Wall Street stocks moved sideways early Friday (Feb 13) following the prior session's selloff after data showing US consumer inflation cooled a bit in December. The consumer price index rose 2.4% year-on-year, down from December's 2.7% and slightly below analysts' median forecast.

Why it matters

The benign inflation data removes a potential negative factor that had been weighing on the markets, as investors have been questioning growth assumptions surrounding the artificial intelligence investment boom and the impact of technology on legacy companies.

The details

About 40 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.1% at 22,580.51, while the broad-based S&P 500 gained 0.1% to 6,839.17 and the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index added 0.1% at 49,4789.17. Major US indices fell more than one percent on Thursday following another round of selling in several leading large technology stocks.

  • The consumer price index data was released on February 13, 2026.

The players

Steve Sosnick

An analyst at Interactive Brokers.

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What they’re saying

“There was some real fear ahead of the CPI data. This removes the big potential negative from today's activity.”

— Steve Sosnick, Analyst (Interactive Brokers)

The takeaway

The benign inflation data has helped ease concerns about the potential negative impact on the markets, allowing stocks to move sideways as investors continue to assess the growth assumptions and effects of the artificial intelligence investment boom.