Key Takeaways

  • The Nasdaq 100 climbed 1.45% after Tuesday’s JOLTS-fueled drop.
  • Nasdaq futures slipped 0.14% ahead of the bell in New York later today.

Nasdaq’s Comeback

The Nasdaq 100 rose 1.45%, coming ahead of the nonfarm payrolls due Friday. Bouncing back from Tuesday’s sell-offs, the Nasdaq 100 is leading the resurgence, with the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average following closely behind, with 0.81% and 0.39% gains respectively. So far this year, the tech-heavy Nasdaq has gained an impressive 35.07%, leaving its two peers in the dust.   Wednesday’s surge comes after setbacks during Tuesday’s session, triggered by the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS). The underwhelming data caught some investors off-guard, as it revealed 9.6 million jobs opened in August, compared to the anticipated 8.8 million.  For some investors, these results could be signaling that the economy may be overheating, and the Federal Reserve will be required to keep interest rates higher for longer (as they have been saying all along).  We reported on Wednesday that the 10-year Treasury yields had hit highs unseen since 2007. Following the release of Tuesday’s JOLTS results, these yields lowered by 0.08 percentage points, to the relief of some market participants. 

Upcoming Labor Insights

The JOLTS results precede the upcoming September nonfarm payrolls report, set to be released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics this Friday. Optimism remains high as unemployment numbers are expected to stay low, with experts forecasting a change of 0.1%, bringing it down from 3.8% to 3.7%. On top of that, Wall Street projects 163,000 new hires added for the month, down from 187,000 in August.  The Nasdaq 100 comprises the top 100 tech-related stocks including Apple, Netflix and PayPal. Traders should watch what happens in this index, as it can be prone to high-volatility periods, presenting trading opportunities for the risk takers.