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Happy Thursday. CNBC's "Halftime Report" and "Closing Bell" will both air live from San Francisco for special "AI in America" shows today. Watch live on CNBC or CNBC+.
Nasdaq futures are lower this morning. The market is coming off a rough day, which we recap below.
Here are five key things investors need to know to start the trading day:
1. ROI on AI
Jonathan Raa | Nurphoto | Getty Images
2. Hot streak
A shopper looks for items in a grocery store on October 14, 2026 in Miami, Florida.
Joe Raedle | Getty Images
Yesterday's consumer price index data came in hotter than economists anticipated on a 12-month basis, largely thanks to surging energy prices.
The report marked the 66th straight annual CPI reading above the widely accepted inflation target of 2%, according to a CNBC analysis. That's the longest such stretch in this century. Cleveland Federal Reserve President Beth Hammack warned last week consumers might be starting to accept high inflation as a "fact of life," which could have negative implications for the effectiveness of monetary policy tools.
September's producer price index — which tracks wholesaler inflation — and retail sales data are slated to be released this morning.
3. Tank challenges
An oil tanker unloads imported crude oil at the oil terminal of Qingdao Port in Qingdao City, Shandong Province, China, on September 2, 2026. (Photo by Costfoto/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images
Speaking of energy prices: Diesel prices remain elevated in the run-up to the midterm election. CNBC's Gabriel Cortés reports that analysts don't expect costs to come down anytime soon, even with President Donald Trump's recent diesel deal with Russia.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also told the Financial Times that Kyiv would resume attacks on Russian oil refineries, saying Moscow didn't hold up its end of the "energy ceasefire" Trump announced on Sunday. The proposed truce was another apparent attempt at lowering diesel and oil prices.
Meanwhile, a container ship sank in the Strait of Hormuz yesterday as Iran ramps up attacks on commercial vessels in an effort to block crude exports in the passageway.
4. Wednesday
The Netflix logo is displayed at a company office on May 12, 2026 in Los Angeles, California.
Justin Sullivan | Getty Images
Netflix said in a memo obtained by CNBC that it will lay off around 6% of its workforce, which equates to about 1,000 employees. The cuts mainly impact the streamer's product, tech, legal and HR teams.
The layoffs come just a few weeks after Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said that the streaming giant was "not growing as fast as I want." Sarandos and his co-CEO Greg Peters wrote in the memo to employees yesterday that "our business is strong and growing, and we remain on track to deliver our full year forecast."
Mark your calendars: Netflix reports earnings on Tuesday.
5. Good debt?
Glorya Kaufman Hall at UCLA on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025 in Westwood, CA.
Myung J. Chun | Los Angeles Times | Getty Images
Mortgages and student loans have typically been dubbed "good debt." In a new series of articles out this morning, CNBC's reporters examine what that term actually means and what questions to consider before taking "good debt" on.
Experts warn that this rosy label can sometimes mask risk that borrowers may not be able to afford. That's an especially important question for college students and their parents, as the perceived benefits of higher education shift.
The Daily Dividend
Merck CEO Rob Davis told CNBC's Annika Kim Constantino yesterday that he expects manufacturing of the company's breakthrough cancer vaccine with Moderna to get faster over time. Here's what he said:
watch now
— CNBC's Michelle Fox, Oliver Renick, Isabel O'Brien, Kai Nicol-Schwarz, Hugh Son, CJ Haddad, Paulina Likos, Lee Ying Shan, Sawdah Bhaimiya, Jeff Cox, Greg Iacurci, Gabriel Cortés, Elsa Ohlen, Spencer Kimball, Catriona Marangi, Sarah Whitten, Jessica Dickler, Annie Nova, Stephanie Dhue and Annika Kim Constantino contributed to this report.
Caleigh Keating assisted in the production of this newsletter. Josephine Rozzelle edited this edition.
