Markets mixed after hotter PPI

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on May 13 that its producer price index for final demand rose 1.4% in April, the biggest monthly increase since March 2022. Treasury yields moved higher on May 14, with the U.S. 2-year yield trading around 4.0%, while the Invesco QQQ Trust, which tracks the Nasdaq-100, still closed higher at $719.79. Bitcoin also swung sharply, falling below $79,000 intraday before ending the day above $81,000, according to CoinMarketCap data. The moves left stocks, bonds and crypto pointing in different directions a day after the inflation report. ### What did the producer price report show? The Bureau of Labor Statistics said final-demand PPI increased 1.4% in April after gains of 0.7% in March and 0.6% in February. On a 12-month basis, the index rose 6.0%, the fastest annual increase since December 2022, according to the agency’s release. Core measures were also firm. The BLS said prices excluding foods, energy and trade services rose 0.9% in April from March, while services accounted for nearly 60% of the monthly increase in final demand prices. ### How did Treasury yields react? The U.S. 2-year Treasury yield rose to about 4.02% on May 14, according to Investing.com and Trading Economics historical data. (bls.gov) That left the policy-sensitive yield modestly above the prior session, extending a move higher after the PPI release. FRED’s constant-maturity 2-year series showed the yield at 3.99% on May 13, the latest federal database reading available in the search results. (dol.gov) The intraday and market-close data compiled by bond-market sites on May 14 put the yield slightly above that level. ### Why did QQQ rise if yields were moving up? Invesco QQQ Trust closed at $719.79 on May 14, up $5.08, or 0.71%, according to market data cited by StockAnalysis and StockScan. (investing.com) The ETF traded as high as $722.03 during the session, which matched the 52-week high shown in those listings. The broader Nasdaq also rose on May 14. A market roundup published that day said the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.20% to 26,402.34 even after the hotter producer-price reading, with large technology shares leading the advance. (fred.stlouisfed.org) ### What happened in bitcoin during the session? CoinMarketCap data showed bitcoin opened May 14 at $79,276.95, fell as low as $78,909.68 and reached a high of $82,005.96 before closing at $81,051.25. (stockscan.io) Those figures support the broad market description of an early drop below $80,000 followed by a rebound toward $82,000. CoinGecko’s daily data also showed bitcoin closing near $81,052 on May 14, broadly matching the CoinMarketCap figures. (riotimesonline.com) CoinDesk reported on May 14 that bitcoin hit $82,000 as crypto-related shares gained. ### Did the inflation report immediately change the market narrative? The May 13 PPI release did trigger higher yields, based on the bond-market move that followed, but equities did not move in lockstep. (coinmarketcap.com) The same-day market roundup cited record closes for major stock indexes even as producer inflation accelerated. That split underscored that different asset classes responded differently to the same inflation data. (coingecko.com) The Bureau of Labor Statistics has already scheduled its next producer price index release for June 11, 2026, at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time. That date is listed on the agency’s archived April 2026 PPI release page. (bls.gov) (riotimesonline.com)