NEW YORK, September 3, 2026, 13:00 (EDT) — The Nasdaq climbed 1.4% at midday, buoyed by a drop in bond yields that outweighed the impact of $91 oil prices.
- At 12:59 EDT, the Nasdaq Composite was up 1.38%, while the S&P 500 climbed 1.03%.
- The four main indexes slipped during the last hour while WTI crude rose 0.44%.
- The yield on the 10-year Treasury declined by around five basis points, giving a lift to major technology stocks.
By 12:59 EDT, the Nasdaq Composite was up 1.38%. The S&P 500 gained 1.03% and the Dow increased 1.13% Yahoo Finance intraday data.
A decline in Treasury yields boosted interest in long-duration growth stocks. However, the Russell 2000 rose just 0.43%, indicating that the recovery continued to favor larger companies.
Gains paused in the most recent hour. The Nasdaq edged down 0.03% since midday. WTI crude increased 0.44% to $91.54 WTI quote.
Major indexes rose, then paused
Change from Wednesday’s close; .
Bonds led the biggest reaction, with the 10-year yield at 4.75%, easing from 4.796% on Wednesday, after Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller cited conditions for a patient approach.
Waller said he would “support holding the policy rate” if the trend of improving inflation continues Federal Reserve remarks. The yield gained one basis point after midday.
However, any relief was tempered by the latest services data. The services PMI for August increased to 55.4 from 54.1, and the corresponding prices index climbed to 72.6 ISM report.
The employment index stayed under 50, reading 47.8. Initial claims for unemployment benefits rose to 206,000 from 204,000, but the total remained at a historically low level AP.
Participation was broad by sector, thinner by size
Nine out of 11 sector funds posted gains. Consumer discretionary and financial stocks outperformed, while materials declined and energy was unchanged, even as crude oil prices strengthened.
Turnover in exchange-traded funds remained consistent. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust NYSEARCA:SPY recorded 20.4 million shares traded as of 12:59 EDT, compared to 17.6 million shares for the Invesco QQQ Trust NASDAQ:QQQ.
The valuation tailwind met an oil headwind
Major tech stocks accounted for a significant portion of the index’s strength. Microsoft Corporation NASDAQ:MSFT advanced 2.87%, Meta Platforms, Inc. NASDAQ:META climbed 3.57%, and Apple Inc. NASDAQ:AAPL was up 1.23%.
NVIDIA Corporation NASDAQ:NVDA rose 1.40% following its agreement to acquire Hugging Face for $12.93 billion NVIDIA Newsroom. The acquisition provided an additional growth driver for the rate-sensitive sector.
Company earnings drove market divergence. Snowflake Inc. NYSE:SNOW jumped 21.60%, while Broadcom Inc. NASDAQ:AVGO slipped 2.96%, even as its quarterly revenue climbed 86% Broadcom results.
Shares of Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company NYSE:HPE fell 3.97%. Tyson Foods, Inc. NYSE:TSN declined 6.99% after cutting its yearly forecast AP market report.
Company news widened the spread
Session change at 12:59 EDT; bar length shows absolute move against Snowflake’s 21.60% gain.
Oil continued to stand out as the main challenge to the recovery driven by rates. U.S. crude is up roughly 11% this week as clashes with Iran escalate, heightening inflation concerns AP.
The August jobs report, set for release Friday, marks the next key indicator. FactSet-polled economists predict 65,000 new jobs and an unemployment rate at 4.2% AP.
Risks: A stronger-than-expected jobs report, a fresh surge in oil prices, or a renewed selloff in Treasuries could wipe out recent valuation relief. Such a shift would be intensified by concentrated index leadership.
The last hour ahead of this snapshot saw little activity, though not a decline. However, further advances in large caps hinge on yields remaining stable and crude holding above $91.
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