In partnership with

Anna's Markets Recap

_{Just facts, you think for yourself}

Saturday, 5:19 AM

April 11, 2026

Good morning news friend! Here is a quick recap of what happened in the markets this week. 📰🌟

The Gmail app usually clips the bottom quarter of our emails, we recommend you reading our full article online here.

Economic & Market Overview

The week of April 6–10, 2026 delivered the strongest market performance since November. A U.S.-Iran ceasefire announced Tuesday evening triggered a massive risk-on rally, crashed oil prices by 16%, and sent the S&P 500 surging 3.6%. But Friday's data told a darker story. March CPI hit 3.3% annually, University of Michigan consumer sentiment fell to an all-time low of 47.6, and FOMC minutes revealed the Fed is discussing rate hikes.

The Ceasefire Changed Everything on Wednesday

The U.S.-Iran war had closed the Strait of Hormuz, cutting roughly 20% of global seaborne oil supply and pushing WTI crude above $112/barrel by Monday. On Tuesday, markets traded nervously as Trump's 8 PM ET deadline for Iran approached. The S&P 500 fell 0.84% intraday before recovering to close flat at 6,612.

Late Tuesday evening, Pakistan's PM brokered a two-week ceasefire. Iran agreed to reopen the Strait. Trump accepted.

Wednesday's open was electric. The S&P 500 surged 2.51% to 6,782.81. The Dow rocketed 1,300 points — its largest single-day gain since April 2025. The Nasdaq jumped 2.80%. WTI crude crashed from $112 to $94.41, a 16.4% single-day decline not seen since 2020.

But cracks appeared fast. By Thursday, only four ships transited the Strait versus eleven the day before. Iran began requiring military approval for vessel passage. Oil rebounded to ~$98 Thursday before settling near $95.63 Friday. The S&P 500 closed the week at 6,816.89 (+3.6%), the Nasdaq at 22,902.89 (+4.7%), and the Dow at 47,916.57 (+3.0%).

Inflation, Sentiment, and the Fed's Hawkish Pivot

Friday delivered a one-two punch. March CPI rose 0.9% month-over-month — triple February's pace — pushing the annual rate to 3.3%. Gasoline prices surged a record 21.2% in March, accounting for three-quarters of the increase. Core CPI came in at a tamer +0.2% monthly and 2.6% annually, preventing a sharper selloff.

The University of Michigan's April consumer sentiment reading hit 47.6 — an all-time record low, down 11% from March. One-year inflation expectations leapt to 4.8% from 3.8%. Notably, 98% of interviews occurred before the ceasefire.

FOMC minutes from March revealed several participants advocated for rate increases if inflation stays sticky. The fed funds rate sits at 3.50-3.75%. Seven of nineteen participants now see no cuts in 2026. Weekly jobless claims rose to 219,000 (above the 210,000 forecast). Q4 2025 GDP was revised to just 0.5%.

The 10-year Treasury yield started the week near 4.34%, dropped to ~4.22% on Wednesday's rally, then climbed back to ~4.30% after the hot CPI print. Gold ended around $4,793/oz, up modestly from Monday's ~$4,656, as risk-on flows limited safe-haven demand.

Technology & Growth

The Magnificent Seven split wide open. Company-specific news overwhelmed the broader rally, producing a 25+ percentage-point spread between the week's best and worst tech performers.

Amazon (AMZN) surged ~13-14% from ~$207 to ~$238. CEO Andy Jassy's annual shareholder letter disclosed that AWS AI services reached a $15 billion annual revenue run rate — far above analyst estimates of $5-10 billion. Amazon's custom chips business hit a $20 billion run rate, doubling at triple-digit growth. Jassy defended the $200 billion 2026 capex plan.

Broadcom (AVGO) jumped ~16-18% from ~$314 to ~$365-370 after announcing a multi-year deal with Google to develop and supply custom AI chips through 2031. AI semiconductor revenue grew 106% year-over-year in Q1.

Meta (META) gained ~10% from ~$571 to ~$630. Meta unveiled Muse Spark, its first AI model from the Superintelligence Labs — a proprietary model marking a shift from open-source Llama. Meta also committed an additional $21 billion to CoreWeave for AI infrastructure.

NVIDIA (NVDA) rose ~5-7% to ~$189, supported by its $2 billion Marvell investment and Jensen Huang's forecast of $1 trillion in combined Blackwell/Vera Rubin revenue by 2027. Alphabet (GOOGL) gained ~5-6% to ~$317 on the Broadcom partnership and Waymo opening driverless rides in Nashville.

Apple (AAPL) ended flat at ~$257 after a wild ride. Shares plunged 5% on Tuesday after reports of foldable iPhone engineering setbacks, then recovered when Bloomberg's Mark Gurman confirmed the device remains on track for September. Microsoft (MSFT) also finished flat near ~$372, still down 23% year-to-date. Netflix (NFLX) gained 3.1% to ~$102 on a Morgan Stanley upgrade ahead of April 16 earnings.

Tesla (TSLA) fell ~2.5% to ~$343, extending an 8-week losing streak. JPMorgan warned of 60% potential downside and cut EPS estimates. Q1 deliveries of 358,023 vehicles missed estimates.

Salesforce (CRM) was the week's biggest loser, plunging 8-11% from $185 toward ~$165-170. Fears that AI agents will undermine traditional SaaS business models hammered the stock. CRM was the worst-performing Dow component on Friday.

Financial Institutions

JPMorgan Chase (JPM) gained ~2-3% to ~$310. Jamie Dimon's annual shareholder letter called the Iran war the paramount global risk and warned of stickier inflation. JPM reports Q1 earnings April 14 with consensus EPS of $5.38-5.44.

Bank of America (BAC) outperformed at ~+3-4% to ~$52-53 after HSBC upgraded it from Hold to Buy with a $55 target. BAC reports April 15 with consensus EPS of ~$1.01 (+12.2% year-over-year).

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B) gained a modest ~1% to ~$480. Warren Buffett admitted in a recent interview that he sold Apple stock "too soon." Berkshire is participating in a $40 billion U.S.-backed reinsurance program for Strait of Hormuz vessels.

Visa (V) and Mastercard (MA) posted muted gains of ~1-3%. Visa launched an AI commerce platform. Mastercard announced its acquisition of stablecoin company BVNK. Both face ongoing interchange fee litigation with a damages trial in April.

Consumer Staples & Healthcare

UnitedHealth Group (UNH) surged ~9% from $281 to $307. CMS finalized 2027 Medicare Advantage rates at a 2.48% increase worth over $13 billion annually — far exceeding initial proposals. Bernstein raised its price target to $411.

Eli Lilly (LLY) dipped ~1.3% to ~$938 on intensifying GLP-1 competition. AbbVie (ABBV) gained ~1.5% on positive Phase data for its GLP-1 candidate and Skyrizi's Phase 3 success in Crohn's disease. Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) held near all-time highs at ~$241, benefiting from its defensive profile.

Walmart (WMT) traded near ~$127 with its market cap above $1 trillion, driven by 27% U.S. eCommerce growth. Costco (COST) rose ~2.5% to ~$1,030, maintaining an 89.7% membership renewal rate. Procter & Gamble (PG) gained modestly as gasoline prices shifted consumer spending toward essentials.

Energy & Industrial

Exxon Mobil (XOM) was the week's biggest loser, plunging ~5.9% from $164 to ~$154. The ceasefire-driven oil crash hammered energy stocks. XOM disclosed that attacks on Qatari and UAE assets cut ~6% of Q1 production. Despite higher realized prices boosting upstream earnings by up to $2.9 billion, production losses and oil's decline from $112 to $95 outweighed.

Home Depot (HD) hit a 52-week low of $315.31 early in the week before surging 5.44% on Wednesday to ~$336. Mortgage rates near 6.5% and same-store sales growth of just 0.3% remain headwinds.

We don’t take shortcuts, chase headlines, or push narratives. We just bring you the news, straight and fair. If you value that, click here to become a paid subscriber—your support makes all the difference.

Baked with love,

Anna Eisenberg ❤️