Dow futures fall 0.78% while Nasdaq futures hold flat as Novartis drags global pharma and Brent nears US$100
Sentiment: mixed S&P 500 futures: -0.24%
S&P 500 futures sit 0.24% below Friday's settle at 7,703.75 on 8 September 2026, and the Dow carries nearly all of the decline at -0.78% because a price weighted index feels the session's largest single-name loss hardest. NVS.US trades 12.80% lower pre-market at $139.51 after Novartis said del-desiran failed in late stage testing, its third pipeline setback in a week, with the Zurich line down 9.55% to CHF 113.48 and about US$29.6 billion of market value gone. Brent crude is up 2.30% to US$98.49 after Houthi attacks on Saudi civilian and energy sites injured 73 people, three days before the August CPI print and a week before the 15 to 16 September FOMC.
Overnight drivers
- Middle East supply risk: Brent US$98.49 (+2.30%), WTI US$93.63 (+2.35%). The US struck three Iranian oil tankers on Saturday after Iran fired ballistic missiles at two Navy warships, and Houthi forces then hit Saudi energy and civilian sites, wounding 73. Energy leads the US pre-market: XOM.US +1.12%, CVX.US +1.06%, BP.US +2.07%, EQNR.US +2.14%, PBR.US +2.78%.
- Novartis pipeline failures: NVS.US -12.80% pre-market. Del-desiran missed in a late stage trial days after pelacarsen failed to cut cardiovascular events, and a week after Novartis paused eight rap-cel cell therapy trials following three patient deaths. AMGN.US -5.87% on the same Lp(a) question hanging over its olpasiran outcomes study, plus a BMO Capital downgrade. JNJ.US -1.64%, GSK.US -2.10%, SNY.US -2.31%, NVO.US -1.83%, PFE.US -1.39%.
- Intel and semiconductor equipment: INTC.US +4.98% to $100.57 after Intel Foundry and ASML passed one million wafers processed with High-NA EUV on the 18A node, alongside a report that Intel plans to raise chip prices next month. ASML.US +3.53%, ARM.US +3.37%, LRCX.US +2.14%, KLAC.US +2.10%, AMAT.US +2.06%, TSM.US +1.96%.
- Copper at a three month high: US$6.81 per pound (+1.92%). FCX.US +3.41%, BHP.US +2.16%, RIO.US +1.49%. Gold fell 0.77% to US$4,442.00 an ounce and the dollar index eased to 98.92 (-0.26%).
An 84 basis point split between Dow and Nasdaq futures
Dow futures are 419 points lower at 53,021 (-0.78%). Nasdaq 100 futures are 18.00 points higher at 29,583.25 (+0.06%). S&P 500 futures sit between them, 18.25 points lower at 7,703.75 (-0.24%).
AMGN.US is down $25.68 a share pre-market, the largest dollar decline among the 30 Dow members and close to five times the next largest, GS.US at -$5.47. The Dow weights by share price rather than market value, so Amgen alone explains most of the spread between the three contracts. TRV.US -$5.35, JNJ.US -$4.50 and MSFT.US -$2.70 add to it. The Nasdaq 100 holds no Amgen, and it does hold the semiconductor names rising on the Intel news.
Overnight Asia and Europe
- Nikkei 225: 65,269.33 (-1.70%), reversing Monday's 2.12% gain. TOPIX -1.83% to 4,050.33. The yen firmed to 154.07 per dollar from 156.20 on Monday, and Tokyo repriced faster Bank of Japan tightening across exporters, financials, machinery and precision instruments. SONY.US -2.87% in New York pre-market.
- KOSPI: 6,954.52 (-0.58%). Hang Seng 25,317.18 (-0.38%). Shanghai Composite 3,940.55 (+0.20%).
- Europe at the US pre-open: STOXX 600 649.50 (-0.06%), DAX 25,992.78 (-0.05%), FTSE 100 10,822.05 (flat). The Swiss SMI is the outlier at 14,088.16 (-1.34%), and Novartis accounts for the whole of it.
Pre-market movers
| Ticker | Pre-market | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| BE.US | +6.76% | Joins the S&P 500 before the 21 September open |
| ORCL.US | +5.29% | Fiscal Q1 results due Thursday after the close |
| INTC.US | +4.98% | High-NA EUV milestone at 18A, plus a chip price rise report |
| ASML.US | +3.53% | Same High-NA EUV milestone at Intel Foundry |
| FCX.US | +3.41% | Copper at US$6.81 per pound, a three month high |
| HOOD.US | +2.76% | Unannounced, likely flow-driven. |
| NVS.US | -12.80% | Del-desiran late stage failure, third setback in a week |
| AMGN.US | -5.87% | Novartis Lp(a) miss plus a BMO Capital downgrade |
| SONY.US | -2.87% | Yen at 154.07 per dollar, Tokyo exporters fell |
| SNY.US | -2.31% | European pharma fell alongside Novartis |
US economic calendar today (ET)
- 6:00am: NFIB Small Business Optimism (August) printed 98.7, under the 99.3 consensus and down from 99.8 in July.
- 11:00am: New York Fed consumer inflation expectations (August).
- 11:30am: 3 month and 6 month bill auctions.
- 1:00pm: 3 year note auction, the first coupon supply since the Labor Day close.
- 3:00pm: Consumer credit (July).
No 8:30am ET release today, so the cash open trades off the weekend headlines rather than data.
What to watch
- August CPI lands Friday at 8:30am ET, the last inflation print before the 15 to 16 September FOMC. Fed funds futures put the odds of a 25 basis point hike from the current 3.50% to 3.75% range at roughly 60%, and headline CPI ran at 3.4% year on year in July.
- The Treasury market reopens after Monday's holiday with the 10 year yield at its Friday close of 4.78%. Ten year note futures are 0.04% lower pre-open, so the reopening gap is small so far.
- Brent sits US$1.51 under US$100. Energy is the CPI component most exposed to the weekend escalation, though Friday's print covers August, not September.
- PPI and initial jobless claims are due Thursday at 8:30am ET. ORCL.US reports fiscal Q1 after Thursday's close, and the stock is 5.29% higher pre-market.
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