Travel Stocks Rally After Oil Prices Drop

US stocks inched up to more records on Wednesday after oil prices fell back to where they were in mid-April.

• The S&P 500 rose 1.24 points, or less than 0.1%, to 7,520.36.
• The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 182.60 points, or 0.4%, to 50,644.28.
• The Nasdaq composite rose 18.55 points, or 0.1%, to 26,674.73.

All three indexes set records. Bath & Body Works and Abercrombie & Fitch both rallied after becoming the latest companies to deliver stronger profit reports for the start of 2026 than analysts expected, the AP reports. Stocks of oil-and-gas companies fell after oil prices dropped more than 4%.

Stocks of companies with big fuel bills helped lead the way on hopes that lower oil prices will remove a big drag on their profits. Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings climbed 6.2%, and United Airlines rallied 6.3%. Delta Air Lines rose 3%. The price for a barrel of Brent crude oil fell 4.6% to $92.25 after the ceasefire between the United States and Iran appeared to hold despite the US military launching what it called "self-defense" strikes in southern Iran. A barrel of benchmark US crude fell 5.5% to settle at $88.68 on hopes that the United States and Iran can reach an agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and allow oil tankers to exit the Persian Gulf for deliveries again.

Stocks have been able to run to records despite the painful inflation and uncertainty caused by high oil prices largely because companies have reported surprisingly strong profits for the start of 2026, and the forecast is for them to continue. Bath & Body Works rallied 9.7%, and Abercrombie & Fitch climbed 8.8% after both reported bigger profits for the latest quarter than analysts expected. That's even as US consumers continue to say they're feeling discouraged about the economy and inflation. Lululemon Athletica rose 2.9% after reaching a deal with its founder, Chip Wilson, in which it will add a former chief marketing officer of ESPN and a former co-CEO of On to its board of directors.

On the losing side of Wall Street was Dick's Sporting Goods, which dropped 6.3% despite delivering a profit for the latest quarter that edged past expectations. Analysts pointed to how much profit it wrung out of each $1 in revenue, which some called a bit weak. Oil-and-gas stocks also sank, hurt by the falling prices for crude. Exxon Mobil fell 1.3%, and Chevron slipped 1.3%. Halliburton dropped 3.6% to bring its gain for the year so far back below 41%.