Stocks Decline as Hot Inflation Data Raise Concerns on Rate Hike

The stock market declined on Wednesday, as a hotter-than-than-expected inflation report heightened concerns over potential Federal Reserve interest rate hikes and deepened a sell-off in technology and semiconductor shares

September inflation came in at 3.7% year over year, above the 3.6% forecast.

Overall, S&P 500 decreased 1.1% to 7,719, while Nasdaq fell 1.9% to 26,693.

Chart of the Day

Here is the one-year chart of Vertiv (VRT) as of September 22, 2026, when the stock was at $253.

Vertiv, which provides power and cooling solutions to datacenters, is expanding its liquid cooling technology as AI data centers become more demanding. Liquid cooling uses water or other fluids to carry heat away from powerful computers, helping keep them cool as they become more powerful.

Last quarter, Vertiv highlighted its fluid management technology, including PurgeRite’s NearZero, which captures, treats and reuses water during the startup of a liquid cooling system. Management said NearZero can reduce water use by up to 90% during startup, while also making cooling systems faster and more cost-effective to deploy.

Vertiv is also using closed-loop cooling systems that recycle water instead of constantly needing new water, helping data centers reduce water use as they scale. Management stated this technology expands Vertiv’s thermal management offering and is being scaled through its existing service network.

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