Wall Street Steadies After Encouraging Inflation Update

U.S. stocks rise as consumer prices slow more than expected, calming AI-related fears.

Published on Feb. 13, 2026

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The U.S. stock market is holding steadier on Friday after an encouraging update on inflation helped calm Wall Street's worries about how artificial-intelligence technology may disrupt the business world. The S&P 500 rose 0.2%, a day after one of its worst losses since Thanksgiving, as Treasury yields fell following a report showing inflation slowed last month by more than economists expected.

Why it matters

Inflation data is closely watched by investors and the Federal Reserve as it helps determine the central bank's future interest rate decisions. The slower-than-expected inflation increase could signal the Fed may be able to pause its aggressive rate hike campaign sooner, easing concerns about an economic downturn.

The details

U.S. consumers paid prices for groceries, clothes and other costs of living that were 2.4% higher overall than a year earlier. While that's higher than the Fed's 2% target, it wasn't as bad as December's 2.7% rate. An underlying measure that economists see as a better predictor of where inflation may be heading also slowed to its least-painful level in nearly five years.

  • The data was released on Friday, February 13, 2026.

The players

S&P 500

A stock market index that tracks the 500 largest U.S. publicly traded companies.

Federal Reserve

The central banking system of the United States that sets monetary policy, including interest rates.

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The takeaway

The better-than-expected inflation data provides hope that the Federal Reserve may be able to pause its aggressive interest rate hike campaign sooner, easing concerns about a potential economic downturn and steadying the volatile stock market.