top of page

War and Stock Rally Continues, Consumers in Bad Mood Keep Buying, and Ball Games

  • Writer: Doug MacGray
    Doug MacGray
  • 12 minutes ago
  • 4 min read

April 26, 2026


VOLATILE OIL PRICES EDGE DOWN AGAIN: The Brent Crude Oil spot price ended the week down another $3.00 per barrel. In the last three weeks it has ended at $119, $116, and now $113. It briefly got below $100 last week before rising again.


CONSUMERS IN A FOUL MOOD: The University of Michigan has been keeping a survey-driven consumer sentiment index for about fifty years. In March, the index came in at 49.8, dropping from 53.3 the month before. That is the lowest reading for this index ever. So far, the foul mood of consumers is not affecting their appetite for spending or buying stocks (see below).


DOWN AND UP: Despite an early-week pullback, U.S. stock markets ended at new highs, keeping the rally going. The technology and energy sectors led the way, both up over 3% for the week. Advanced Micro Devices, Texas Instruments, and ON Semiconductor Corporation were up 24.9%, 20.6% and 18.5% respectively. Intel was up 24% after reporting higher sales and demand for its central processing units from data centers. So far, earnings season is lifting stock prices despite Iran. This coming week, five of the Magnificent seven stocks will report earnings (and move markets). In addition, we should get a report on first quarter GDP, and the Fed will be meeting. Buckle up.



LONGER-TERM PERFORMANCE: Below are the annualized three-year and five-year numbers for these same indices.


U.S. RETAIL SALES CLIMB: U.S. retail sales rose by 1.7% in March as they were filling out surveys indicating that they were not in a good mood (see above). This was the largest monthly increase in a year. If you were waiting for a "but," I will not disappoint. But, a big part of the increase was the 15.5% increase in gas prices. Despite the high gas prices online retail sales grew by 1.0%, and restaurants and bars were up, barely (0.1%).


RETIREMENT CONFIDENCE IS DECREASING IN THE U.S.: At Stonecrop, we are constantly running projections to determine whether our clients will be financially independent by their target age. According to the 2026 EBRE/Greenwald Retirement Confidence Survey, only 61% of U.S. workers are confident in having enough money to retire comfortably. That was a 6% drop from last year's survey. When retirees were asked how confident they are that they will be able to fund their needs, 73% responded positively, a 5% drop from last year.


TOO MUCH!!: According to data compiled by the Pew Research Center, 95% of U.S. teens say they are on the internet either "almost constantly" (40%) or "several times a day" (55%). 21% of teens are on TikTok almost constantly. 17% are on YouTube almost constantly. 12% are on Instagram almost constantly. A U.S. jury recently found Facebook parent company Meta and YouTube liable in a social media addiction trial. According to the BBC, jurors concluded that the platforms were deliberately designed to be addictive. I would imagine that this lawsuit will inspire others.


GREAT GAME: My son Riley and I went to the Sixers/Celtics playoff game in Philadelphia on Friday night. It was an exciting game, and I made it out alive.


PLAY BALL!: I also got to watch this slugger on Saturday morning. His biggest challenge wasn't hitting the ball, but remembering to run to first base when he did hit the ball.


Have a great week!


Our purpose is to honour God by helping our clients see the objective, find the path, and navigate past the obstacles to a more prosperous future.



Douglas R. MacGray, J.D., C.F.P. ®

President

Stonecrop Wealth Advisors, LLC

Direct | Cell | Fax

(610) 628 4545




"I have been almost overwhelmed by the announcement of the sad event [Lincoln's assassination] which has so recently occurred. I feel incompetent to perform duties so important and responsible as those which have been so unexpectedly thrown upon me." Andrew Johnson*


"Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread." Proverbs 30:8 (NIV)


*In commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the United States, I am finding a quote from a president each week, in order. This is the 17th week, and Andrew Johnson was our 17th president.


SOURCES:

TOO MUCH!!: https://www.statista.com/chart/36028/teens-daily-use-of-internet-and-social-media-by-frequency/ AND https://www.zerohedge.com/technology/4-10-american-teens-are-almost-constantly-online


(c) 2026 Anno Domini, Stonecrop Wealth Advisors, LLC, All Rights Reserved


Investment advisory services offered through Stonecrop Wealth Advisors, LLC, a Registered Investment Advisor with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.


SDG


*S&P 500: This is a measure of the performance of the 500 largest companies in the United States, and it a common index to track the performance of U.S. equity markets, especially the large cap markets.

*MSCI All Country World Index X US: This is a broad measure of the performance of worldwide equity markets excluding the United States.

*Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate: This is a measure of the U.S. bond markets.

Comments

bottom of page