Dow Gains 556 Points as Producer Prices Post Biggest Rise Since 2022

U.S. stocks finished higher Thursday, Oct. 15, after major indexes recovered from early losses. The Dow’s advance outpaced modest gains in the S&P 500 and Nasdaq as producer prices recorded their sharpest monthly increase since March 2022, with energy driving much of the rise.

At the 4 p.m. ET close (20:00 UTC), the Dow Jones Industrial Average stood at 52,177.69, up 556.21 points, or 1.1%. The S&P 500 finished at 7,744.06, a 0.3% gain, and the Nasdaq Composite ended at 26,713.03, up 0.1%.

The indexes’ different gains did not establish a broad move away from artificial intelligence stocks. The Dow is a price-weighted index of 30 U.S. blue-chip companies, while AI-linked shares had mixed results. Nvidia and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.’s U.S.-traded shares each fell 1.8%. CoreWeave recovered from an early decline to finish higher, following a 15.5% drop in the previous session.

For final demand, the September Producer Price Index (PPI) rose 1.3% from August after seasonal adjustment. Its unadjusted increase over 12 months was 6.3%. The monthly rise was the largest since March 2022; the annual increase was the biggest since December 2022.

Energy was responsible for more than four-fifths of September’s increase in final-demand goods prices. The final-demand energy index climbed 10.8%, and gasoline prices rose 20.3%. The September Consumer Price Index (CPI), which measures prices from the purchaser’s perspective, increased 0.6% from August and 3.7% over the year. PPI tracks prices received by producers.

Company results also featured in the session. Marsh’s third-quarter revenue grew 8%, including 5% underlying growth. Adjusted earnings reached $2.03 per share, 10% higher than a year earlier. Bank of New York Mellon reported quarterly earnings of $2.34 per share; their shares rose 4.6% and 3.2%, respectively.