US January CPI Rises 2.4% YoY, Markets Up
The major averages were higher near noon as traders digest a slate of earnings releases as well as the January consumer price index release. The Bureau of Labor Statistics said that CPI for last month rose 0.2%, reflecting a gain of 2.4% on an annualized basis. Both inflation figures were lower than consensus estimates of 0.3% and 2.5%, respectively.Looking to commodities, gold was trading higher once again, surpassing the $5,000 threshold as precious metals continue to show signs of strength as a defensive hedge. Oil, meanwhile, was fractionally lower to cap off an otherwise strong week for the commodity.Get caught up quickly on the top news and calls moving stocks with these five Top Five lists.1. STOCK NEWS:Pinterestreportedand provided a lower-than-expected outlook for Q1Airbnbreportedbut better-than-expected revenueDraftKingsreportedand provided downbeat FY26 revenue guidanceCoinbasereportedAlibabawill be added to a U.S. list of firms aiding China's military,2. WALL STREET CALLS:Pinterestwasto Neutral or equivalent ratings by at least 8 firms after earningsRokuto Buy at RosenblattAirbnbto Outperform at Evercore ISI and to Buy at Deutsche BankNorwegian Cruise Lineto Neutral at JPMorganMerckto Buy at Deutsche Bank3. AROUND THE WEB:GE Aerospaceis making a switch to robots to ease one of aviation's biggest bottlenecks: overloaded repair shops and scarce parts, Reuters reportsRussia has blocked WhatsApp, citing Meta's"unwillingness to comply with Russian law," and is proposing that Russians switch to the state-owned Max app, Reuters reportsAmazonis directing internal teams to use its in-house AI coding assistant, Kiro, for production work, a move that has drawn criticism from roughly 1,500 employees advocating for the use of Anthropic's Claude Code instead, Business Insider saysU.S. prosecutors confirmed that Peter Williams, former head of L3Harris'Trenchant, pleaded guilty to stealing and selling eight sophisticated hacking tools, earning over $1.3M in cryptocurrency between 2022 and 2025, TechCrunch reportsMicrosoftis planning to pursue "true self-sufficiency" in the AI space by building its own models and reducing reliance on OpenAI, FT says4. MOVERS:TRI Pointeincreases after announcing it will befor $47.00 per share in cashCorsair Gaminggains after, providing guidance for Q1 and FY26, and announcing its Board authorizes the repurchase of up to $50M sharesRivianand Magnahigher in New York afterBright Horizonsfalls afterand providing guidance for FY26Fortune Brandslower afterand appointing Banati as CEO5. EARNINGS/GUIDANCEModerna, with EPS and revenue beating consensusInstacart, with the company commenting, "In Q4, we delivered our strongest quarterly GTV growth in three years"Wendy'sand provided guidance for Fy256Wynn Resorts, with EPS missing consensusDauch Corporationand provided guidance for FY26INDEXES:Near midday, the Dow was up 0.43%, or 210.88, to 49,662.86, the Nasdaq was up 0.31%, or 69.77, to 22,666.91, and the S&P 500 was up 0.54%, or 37.18, to 6,869.94.