Market Summary
U.S. equities closed lower on Friday, September 4, capping a volatile week as a stronger-than-expected August Employment Report reignited concerns over a September Fed rate hike. The S&P 500 fell 29.11 points (-0.38%) to 7718.60, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 271.86 points (-0.51%) to 53414.25, and the Nasdaq Composite slipped 77.07 points (-0.29%) to 26528.04. Small- and mid-caps bucked the trend, with the Russell 2000 (+0.3%) and S&P Mid Cap 400 (+0.1%) posting modest gains on the day.
The employment data — nonfarm payrolls of 162,000 versus a 45,000 consensus, an unemployment rate of 4.1%, and average hourly earnings up 0.3% — pushed the CME FedWatch-implied probability of a September rate hike to roughly 60%, up from about 50% a day earlier. Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack reinforced the hawkish tone, stating inflation remains too high and “it’s time to act.” Beneath the headline losses, sector performance was sharply divided: semiconductor strength (PHLX Semiconductor Index +3.4%) lifted Information Technology (+0.2%) and Industrials (+0.4%) into positive territory, while software stocks, consumer discretionary names, and credit-scoring companies were hit hard following idiosyncratic earnings and regulatory news.
For the week, the major averages finished little changed despite significant intraday volatility driven by a roughly 10% surge in WTI crude tied to renewed U.S.-Iran tensions, followed by a mid-week stabilization in oil and yields that fueled a broad rebound. The Nasdaq Composite (+0.4%), S&P 500 (+0.1%), Russell 2000 (+0.1%), and S&P Mid Cap 400 (+0.2%) eked out gains, while the DJIA (-0.3%) lagged. Year-to-date, the Russell 2000 (+19.9%), S&P Mid Cap 400 (+14.5%), Nasdaq Composite (+14.1%), S&P 500 (+12.8%), and DJIA (+11.1%) all remain solidly positive.
Market Snapshot
| Index | Level | Change | % Change |
|—|—|—|—|
| Dow Jones | 53,414.25 | -271.86 | -0.51% |
| Nasdaq Composite | 26,528.04 | -77.07 | -0.29% |
| S&P 500 | 7,718.60 | -29.11 | -0.38% |
Breadth (NYSE): Advancers 1,321 | Decliners 1,369 | Volume 987.83 mln
Breadth (Nasdaq): Advancers 2,532 | Decliners 2,338 | Volume 6.54 bln
WaveFinder Market Breadth (as of 09/04/2026):
- Primary Sentiment: Bullish | 4% Sentiment: Bullish | 40 SMA Sentiment: Neutral
- Primary Bulls/Bears: 795 / 535
- 4% Bulls/Bears: 206 / 104
- % of Stocks Above 20-day SMA: 23%
- % of Stocks Above 40-day SMA: 49.91%
- 9-Month Bulls/Bears: 24 / 7 (Bull Follow-Through: 30%)
Despite modestly negative index-level closes, underlying breadth data reflects a market still leaning bullish on primary trend, though participation above short-term moving averages remains narrow (only 23% above the 20-day SMA).
Sector Performance
Ranked by daily performance (where disclosed) per Briefing.com Industry Watch:
1. Industrials +0.4% — Strong; benefited from spillover semiconductor strength
2. Information Technology +0.2% — Strong; sharp internal split between semis and software
3. Financials -0.8% — Weak; pressured by credit-bureau selloff
4. Communication Services -0.9% — Weak; largest components lagged
5. Consumer Discretionary -1.3% — Weak; Tesla and lululemon led declines
6. Energy — Weak (daily % not disclosed)
7. Materials — Weak (daily % not disclosed)
8. Health Care — Weak (daily % not disclosed)
9. Real Estate — Weak (daily % not disclosed)
10. Consumer Staples — Weak (daily % not disclosed)
11. Utilities — Not specified in Industry Watch commentary
WaveFinder Sector ATR (volatility context): Energy showed the highest and rising volatility (ATR 2.38%, rising, P47), while Health Care (1.99%, falling, P0) and Communication Services (1.22%, falling, P16) also carried elevated volatility profiles. Utilities (-2.14%) and Real Estate (-2.05%) registered falling/flat volatility readings.
Key Earnings & Movers
- lululemon athletica (LULU) 100.61, -21.16 (-17.38%) — Fell below $100 for the first time in years after Q2 revenue declined 4% yr/yr to $2.42 billion and comps fell 9% (10% CC); FY27 guidance cut for a second straight quarter amid CEO transition concerns.
- Fair Isaac (FICO) 932.26, -186.67 (-16.68%) — Tumbled after FHFA Director Bill Pulte said Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac will allow lenders to use VantageScore, threatening FICO’s mortgage-scoring dominance.
- Equifax (EFX) 177.05, -12.04 (-6.37%) and TransUnion (TRU) 79.88, -5.04 (-5.94%) — Fell on Pulte’s criticism of credit-bureau pricing and a potential “bi-merge” system.
- Adobe (ADBE) 266.51, -19.24 (-6.73%) — Declined after naming a new CEO, dragging software peers lower.
- Sandisk (SNDK) 1,740.00, +185.01 (+11.90%) — Surged on stronger DRAM/NAND pricing, robust server demand, and a technical rebound.
- Tesla (TSLA) 354.08, -22.28 (-5.92%) — Gave back Thursday’s rally.
- Oracle (ORCL) 158.83, +4.79 (+3.11%) — Set to report earnings after Thursday’s close next week.
- DocuSign (DOCU) — Traded higher following Q2 upside and raised FY27 ARR growth guidance (+8.5–9.0% from +8.25–8.75%), driven by accelerating adoption of its Intelligent Agreement Management (IAM) platform, now 15.1% of ARR.
Stock Spotlight
lululemon athletica (LULU) was the session’s most significant mover, plunging 17.38% to $100.61 after a disappointing Q2 report that intensified concerns about the brand’s trajectory. While adjusted EPS of $2.92 (including a $0.86 tariff-refund benefit) beat the company’s prior guidance, revenue fell 4% yr/yr to $2.42 billion, missing expectations, and total comps declined 9% (10% in constant currency) on broad traffic weakness. Americas comps fell 12% (versus -5% in Q1), while international comps dropped 3% (6% CC) as China — previously a growth engine — reversed to an 8% CC comp decline. Core leggings sales fell roughly 20%.
The bigger blow was guidance: LULU cut FY27 outlook for a second consecutive quarter, with Q3 EPS and revenue guidance coming in well below Street expectations. Operating margin declined 190 bps to 18.8% despite the tariff-refund tailwind, reflecting product margin pressure from tariffs and markdowns plus 230 bps of fixed-cost deleverage. Management is responding with increased H2 marketing investment and more aggressive inventory chasing (+20% yr/yr), but the stock’s slide below the $100 threshold — a multi-year low — underscores investor skepticism heading into a CEO transition.
Bond Market & Treasuries
Treasuries sold off Friday after the stronger-than-expected jobs report reversed an initially modest rally. Yield moves (with weekly change in parentheses):
- 2-yr: 4.38% (+5 bps day, +3 bps week)
- 3-yr: 4.45% (+4 bps day, +5 bps week)
- 5-yr: 4.55% (+4 bps day, +7 bps week)
- 10-yr: 4.78% (+2 bps day, +6 bps week)
- 30-yr: 5.25% (unchanged day, +4 bps week)
The 2s10s spread widened 3 bps to 40 bps, with relative weakness concentrated in the belly of the curve. The August Employment Situation report — nonfarm payrolls of 162,000 versus 45,000 expected, alongside upward revisions to July — drove the implied probability of a September rate hike to roughly 60%. The market now awaits August PPI and CPI data (due next week) for further clarity ahead of the September 15-16 FOMC meeting. Additional headlines included U.S. Treasury sanctions on Golden Global investment bank over Iran-related dealings and reports that Norway’s sovereign wealth fund may trim its UST holdings.
Commodities
- WTI Crude: $91.50/bbl, +$0.15 (+0.2%) — up roughly 10% for the week amid U.S.-Iran tensions
- Gold: $4,476.00/ozt, -1.4%
- Copper: $6.68/lb, +0.2%
- Silver: Not reported in available data
Overseas Markets
Specific Asian and European equity index levels were not available in today’s dataset; however, key macro releases shaped sentiment:
- Japan: July Household Spending +0.5% m/m (expected +2.6%; prior -6.4%), but -3.6% yr/yr; Finance Minister Katayama confirmed a record FY27/28 budget of JPY143 trillion.
- South Korea: July Current Account surplus of $42.08 billion (down from $49.73 billion prior).
- Eurozone: July Retail Sales -0.6% m/m (expected +0.3%), +0.6% yr/yr.
- Germany: July Factory Orders +2.5% m/m (expected +0.3%).
- Italy: July Retail Sales -0.4% m/m, +0.8% yr/yr.
- U.K.: Reportedly moving to approve new North Sea oil drilling efforts.
- Corporate: Volkswagen’s supervisory board approved a plan for up to 50,000 additional job cuts.
Currency moves: USD/JPY +0.3% to 156.22; EUR/USD -0.1% to 1.1612; GBP/USD -0.1% to 1.3515; USD/CNH -0.1% to 6.7084. The U.S. Dollar Index rose 0.3% to 99.16, trimming its weekly decline to 0.5%.
Economic Data
- August Nonfarm Payrolls: +162K (consensus +45K); July revised to +21K from -23K
- August Private Payrolls: +127K (consensus +45K); July revised to +71K from +30K
- August Unemployment Rate: 4.1% (consensus 4.2%; prior 4.1%)
- August Average Hourly Earnings: +0.3% (consensus +0.2%; July revised to +0.2% from +0.1%); +3.1% yr/yr, down from +3.2%
- August Average Workweek: 34.4 hours (consensus 34.3; prior 34.3)
- Labor Force Participation Rate: 61.6% (up from 61.4%)
- U6 Underemployment Rate: 7.7% (down from 7.9%)
Market Impact: The blowout headline payrolls figure pushed September rate-hike odds to ~60% from ~50%, driving Treasury yields and the dollar higher while pressuring equities. However, underlying softness — a 71,000 three-month payroll average, decelerating wage growth, and a rise in long-term unemployed (27.0% vs. 25.5%) — tempered the hawkish read and kept a September hike from being a foregone conclusion.
Looking Ahead
- Monday, Sept. 7: Bond and equity markets closed for Labor Day
- Tuesday, Sept. 8: August NFIB Small Business Optimism Index (consensus 99.3; prior 99.8) at 6:00 ET; $58 billion 3-year Treasury note auction
- Later in the week: August PPI and CPI reports will be closely watched as the next major catalysts for September FOMC rate-hike expectations (CPI due Sept. 11)
- Earnings: Oracle (ORCL) reports after Thursday’s close — one of the few notable reports in an otherwise light, holiday-shortened week
- FOMC: September meeting scheduled for Sept. 15-16, with markets currently pricing a ~60% probability of a 25-basis-point hike