Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026…4:10 PM ET
[4:00 PM ET closing prices for stocks; 3:45ish for commodities and bonds.]
I’ll be going without videos the rest of the week as I figure out over the weekend the next step with regards to my computer(s), though it’s all about just giving you some basic daily market action and this method gets the job done.
But I wouldn’t have been making a video anyway today because you have to picture I’m in a large multi-use building, across from a major Bristol Myers headquarters, and we have a large parking lot, with some of the businesses on the ground floor, like Dunkin’ Donuts, very popular.
As in, after a foot of snow on Sunday, and businesses and schools closed Monday, it wasn’t until Monday night that the snowplow company really began to clear the lot and you can’t just leave mounds blocking entrances to the complex.
So right now you have these two CAT plows going non-stop to finish the job, much of their work right below me and it’s noisy as hell!
Anyway, we had a mixed day on Wall Street for one major reason. The Dow Jones fell 400+ points, basically because of Dow component, United Healthcare, whose shares fell 20%!
The reason was the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) said late Monday that payments to private Medicare advantage plans would rise by just 0.9% on average in 2027, way below what analysts had been expecting.
As Barron’s noted, the proposed increase is worth about $700 million for health insurers (including Humana, down nearly 20% as well…CVS down about 14%). By contrast the rate increase of 5.06% for the current year is expected to net them more than $25 billion in extra revenue. Medicare Advantage plans account for more than $500 billion in yearly revenue overall.
The payment rate ultimately dictates how much insurers can charge for monthly premiums and, by extension, their profits.
Now this is just a proposal, and a final ruling will probably come in April, but the share price action is fully understandable.
Otherwise, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq had solid up days, with the S&P hitting a new record high.
Oil had a good day as the severe winter storm disrupted crude production and refinery operations. U.S. oil producers lost up to 2 million barrels per day, or roughly 15% of national output, over the weekend as freezing weather strained energy infrastructure and power grids. Several refineries along the Gulf Coast reported weather-related issues, raising concerns about near-term fuel supply should the cold weather persist.
And then you have geopolitical risk and whether the U.S. is gearing up to strike Iran.
Gold and silver had another strong day, the former hitting an all-time high of $5140. Monday night, President Trump threatened new tariffs on South Korea for delaying approval of a preliminary trade pact. This came days after Trump threatened Canada with 100% tariffs if the country made a trade deal with China.
Meanwhile, UPS announced it was cutting an additional 30,000 operational positions this year, after eliminating 48,000 jobs last year…14,000 in management, 34,000 in operations.
The company said the latest head-count reduction will be accomplished through a voluntary separation offering for full-time drivers, as well as attrition.
Dow Jones -408 (-0.8%)
S&P 500 +28 (+0.4%)…but a new high, barely, at 6978.
Nasdaq +215 (+0.9%)
Oil (WTI) $62.25…Nat Gas $6.55
Gold $5142
Silver $110.75
Bitcoin $89,340 [4:00 PM ET]
U.S. 2-yr. 3.57%
U.S. 10-yr. 4.23%
Japanese 10-yr. 2.27%…up five basis points.
Back with you tomorrow. Fed decision day!!! Beer will be flowing at HQ.
Brian Trumbore