Wed., Nov. 4, 2026
[4:10 PM ET…closing prices for stocks, 3:50ish for commodities and bonds]
Tale of the Tape at the gas pump, nationwide averages, courtesy of AAA.
Fri., Feb. 27…regular $2.98…diesel $3.75
Wed., Nov. 4…regular $4.12…diesel $6.27
‘Regular’ fell another two cents and is poised to fall further in the coming days as crude oil, along with gasoline futures, both plummeted following the election result, amid the misguided belief the war is about to end.
Crude oil plunged to below $88 a barrel on WTI, Brent under $95, an 8% decline, as investors assessed prospects for de-escalation in the conflict. President Trump told the Financial Times Tuesday night that he had no immediate plan to renew strikes against Iran.
On ongoing indirect negotiations with Tehran, Trump claimed, “We seem to be getting everything we want.”
That’s a lie.
Diplomatic efforts led by Qatar and Pakistan did continue, with Qatari officials expecting responses from both sides on proposals to resolve the conflict, despite reports that negotiations remain far from an argument.
The legitimate positive is renewed Gulf exports continue at a prewar pace, even as U.S. crude inventories fell last week, marking their fifth consecutive weekly decline.
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The new makeup in Congress has the Senate at 54-44, with Alaska and Mississippi still to be determined, while the House is currently at 237-139, 59 yet to be decided, with some talking of an eventual 258-177 split.
President Trump said Tuesday night that the war in Iran was partially to blame for widespread Republican losses in the midterm elections. But he maintained that he didn’t regret launching the war earlier this year.
“Iran was a piece of it,” he said in a phone interview with the Wall Street Journal when asked whether the war contributed to Republicans’ poor performance in the election.
The president said he doesn’t have second thoughts about the war, which has dragged down the popularity of his presidency. He has struggled for months to end the conflict and complained to advisers about how it has become a constant problem.
“I don’t think about it. I did the right thing. I would have done it again,” he said.
The president rejected the notion that the results were a rebuke of his presidency, even as Republicans lost in deep-red states such as Kansas, South Carolina and Texas, and his poll numbers have dropped significantly across many states.
“It was a point in time, and I wasn’t on the ballot,” he said. “The biggest issue is that I wasn’t on the ballot.”
No, Mr. President. You were on the ballot and soundly rejected. It was a referendum on your presidency and Americans sent the message that they are rather tired of your act.
In the key seven Senate races that Democratics had to flip (at least four of them) to take control, instead they swept them all….
South Carolina – Democrat Annie Andrew 51%…Republican Darline Graham 47%
North Carolina – Dem. Roy Cooper 59%…Rep. Michael Whatley 39%
Maine – Dem. Troy Jackson 54%…Rep. Susan Collins 46%
Ohio – Dem. Sherrod Brown 50%…Rep. Jon Husted 45%
Kansas – Dem. Adam Hamilton 51%…Rep. Roger Marshall 46%
Iowa – Dem. Josh Turek 51%…Rep. Ashley Hinson 46%
Texas – Dem. James Tallarico 55%…Rep. Ken Paxton 43%
And in Michigan, Democrat Abdul El-Sayed defeated former Republican Rep. Mike Rogers, 53% to 45%.
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Stocks surged as the election results set up a divided government, with Congress poised to reassert itself as a coequal branch ready to challenge Trump and reverse course after two years of unified GOP control.
For one day at least, investors are embracing the prospect even as results in Texas and other key states threatened to upend the artificial-intelligence trade that has powered markets all year.
Stocks such as CoreWeave that are affiliated with the AI build-out did not do well.
But the natural gridlock that often occurs when different parties are in charge of the White House and Congress can reassure those worried about runaway spending in Washington.
There is also a sense of relief that President Trump is accepting the results and there is no repeat of Jan. 6.
Let’s see how things shake out further in the market in the coming days and weeks.
Dow Jones +1569…+3.0% [53356]
S&P 500 +119…+1.6% [7688]
Nasdaq +364…+1.4% [25736]
Oil (WTI) $88.60…Brent $95.10
Gold $4065
Silver $52.30
Bitcoin: $80,063 [4:00 PM ET]
U.S. 2-yr. 4.57%
U.S. 10-yr. 4.88%
Japanese 10-yr. 2.80%
Back Thurs.
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Brian Trumbore
