Resurgent Bond Yields and Oil Prices Keep Wall Street Indexes In Check

Barry Adams
20 Aug, 2026
New York City

Wall Street indexes held near flatline after a winning session on Wednesday as investors reviewed the details of the U.S. Treasury's plans to ease pressure from the recent bond market rout. 

The S&P 500 Index inched up 0.1%, the Nasdaq Composite edged higher 0.2%, and the yield on 10-year U.S. Treasury notes inched lower to 4.67%. 

The Treasury Department said it plans to double repurchases of 10-, 20-, and 30-year bonds in the next few months, following a surge in long-term yield to a 19-year high earlier in the week. 

Investors are increasingly worried that the sustained rise in fiscal deficit and the recent run-up in the defense budget are likely to push over debt at a faster pace. 

Over the last four and a half years, the U.S. debt jumped by $10 trillion to $40 trillion, a staggering amount, as lawmakers in Washington showed little interest in reversing the course. 

West Texas crude oil futures jumped 2.6% to $86.60 a barrel, and the Brent crude price increased 2.4% to $93.84 after the U.S. president vowed "economic warfare" on Iran and imposed additional sanctions on its supporters. 

The United Arab Emirates said it suspended all trade with Tehran after two missiles were fired towards the UAE, both of which splashed down in the Persian Gulf late Tuesday. 

 

U.S. Movers 

Walmart declined 5.2% to $108.25 after the retailer reported fiscal second-quarter results ending in July, but the company's cautious full-year outlook dragged down the stock. 

Revenue increased 5.9% to $187.9 billion from $177.4 billion, consolidated net income eased to $6.5 billion from $7.2 billion, and diluted earnings per share softened to 80 cents from 88 cents a year ago. 

U.S. comparable sales growth increased 2.6%, down from a 4.1% rise in the first quarter, and e-commerce sales jumped 23% across all its platforms globally. 

The U.S. comparable sales increase was driven by a 1.5% rise in the number of transactions and a 1.1% advance in average ticket size. 

For the third quarter, net sales are expected to increase between 3.0% and 3.75%, and adjusted earnings per share are expected to be between 62 cents and 64 cents. 

For the full year, the world's largest retailer estimated its revenue to rise between 4% and 5% and adjusted earnings per share to range between $2.80 and $2.87. 

The company said it repurchased 42.3 million shares for $5.1 billion at the end of its first half. 

Nordson Corp. increased 1.9% to $309.92 after the precision engineering company released its fiscal third quarter results. 

Sales increased to $817.7 million from $741.5 million, net income advanced to $152.8 million from $125.8 million, and diluted earnings per share rose to $2.72 from $2.22 a year ago. 

Industrial precision segment sales increased to $367.3 million from $350.8 million, medical and fluid segment sales rose to $230.5 million from $219.5 million, and advanced technology segment sales surged to $219.9 million from $171.3 million a year ago. 

The company revised its full-year sales to a new range between $3.035 billion and $3.075 billion. 

Lowe's Companies increased 2.2% to $220.0 after the specialty retailer reported mixed results in its fiscal second quarter ending in July. 

Net sales increased to $26.0 billion from $24.0 billion, net income was flat at $2.4 billion, and diluted earnings per share held steady at $4.27. 

Comparable sales in the quarter edged up barely 0.2%, driven by increases in professional and home services sales, as well as a 15.7% surge in online sales, partially offset by a general macroeconomic weakness.   

The company cited heightened competitive pricing pressure in July as competitors used tariff refund dollars to cut prices, and Lowe's chose not to match these promotions, labeling the dynamic as transitory rather than a permanent shift. 

The company lowered its full-year 2026 sales outlook to $92 billion, from the previous estimated range between $92 billion and $94 billion, and diluted earnings per share to $11.75 compared to the previous range between $11.75 and $12.25. 

Lowe's lowered the comparable sales estimate for the full year to flat compared to the previous estimate between flat and a 2% rise.