US equities closed higher Friday after consumer-price figures showed gasoline costs rebounding from two straight monthly declines, pushing the probability of a Federal Reserve rate increase at Wednesday's meeting to nearly 90 percent from 72 percent on Thursday. The S&P 500 added 64.84 points, or 0.85 percent, to finish at 7,656.54; the Nasdaq Composite rose 245.85 points, or 0.94 percent, to 26,327.58; and the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 502.12 points, or 0.96 percent, to 52,566.22.
The inflation print that mattered
The acceleration in consumer prices last month came almost entirely from energy, where gasoline reversed its summer slide. That was enough for traders to price the hike as a virtual certainty. Thomas Martin, a senior portfolio manager at GLOBALT Investments in Atlanta, called it as close to a slam dunk as the Fed gets, adding that a move would be marginally helpful for keeping inflation in check.
AI hardware rides Oracle's coattails
Dell climbed to an all-time high while Hewlett Packard Enterprise and HP also advanced after Oracle posted quarterly results that beat estimates. Oracle itself dipped, a reminder that supplying the arms race and fighting in it are different businesses. The server makers are pricing in a multi-year capex cycle; the software vendor is still proving it can capture enough of the spend.
Oil holds weekly gain despite pullback
Brent crude futures slipped almost 3 percent on the session but remained above $104 a barrel, leaving the benchmark up roughly 9 percent for the week. Attacks on Middle East shipping lanes have kept a geopolitical premium embedded in the curve even as demand signals soften.
Copart pays up for auction scale
ACV Auctions surged after Copart agreed to acquire the online vehicle auctioneer for nearly $1.9 billion. The deal underscores how consolidated the salvage and remarketing layer has become, Copart is buying volume it cannot easily replicate organically.