US Pre-Market, 17 September 2026: S&P 500 Futures 1.14% Higher as Jobless Claims Fall to 196,000 After the Fed Hike

Sentiment: bullish S&P 500 futures: +1.14% | Nasdaq 100 futures: +1.47% | Dow futures: +1.10% | Russell 2000 futures: +1.23%

S&P 500 futures are 1.14% higher and Nasdaq 100 futures 1.47% higher at 8:33am ET on 17 September 2026 as the 10-year Treasury yield eased to about 4.96% the morning after the Fed's first hike since 2023, and initial jobless claims fell to 196,000. GNRC.US is 29.28% higher at $226.36 after Amazon signed a supply agreement for data center backup generators worth up to $8 billion. WTI is 2.97% lower at US$99.39, a day after Fed Chair Kevin Warsh said inflation "is too high and has been for too long."

Overnight drivers

• Fed hike, then lower yields: The Fed raised its target range 25 bp to 3.75% to 4.00% on Wednesday, and its projections showed one more increase in 2026. The 10-year yield closed at 5.006% and traded about 7 bp lower near 4.96% this morning, Trading Economics data show, with the 2-year at about 4.73%.
• Jobless claims 196,000: The Labor Department said seasonally adjusted initial claims fell 10,000 to 196,000 in the week to 12 September. The four-week average fell 2,750 to 203,250, and insured unemployment fell 39,000 to 1.73 million in the week to 5 September.
• WTI -2.97% to US$99.39: Crude extended Wednesday's 3.60% fall, which followed a 7.1 million barrel inventory build and cuts to 2026 demand growth forecasts from OPEC and the IEA. XOM.US is 0.80% lower pre-market and COP.US 1.35% lower.
• GNRC.US +29.28%: Generac issued Amazon a warrant for up to 1,693,745 shares at $200.93, vesting as Amazon's generator payments build toward $8 billion. Initial deliveries of $2.4 billion are due in 2027 and 2028, the company's 8-K filing says.

Wednesday's close

• S&P 500: 7,551.81 (-0.45%)
• Nasdaq Composite: 25,978.42 (-0.01%)
• Dow: 51,461.90 (-1.21%)
• Russell 2000: 2,858.81 (-0.40%)
• VIX: 17.71 at Wednesday's close, 15.66 (-11.58%) at 8:33am ET

The Dow fell 631 points on Wednesday as GS.US lost 3.96% and bank shares fell after the Fed's projections. XLF.US fell 1.62% and XLE.US 2.88%, while XLK.US rose 0.10%. JBHT.US lost 13.30% after J.B. Hunt warned third-quarter earnings would fall 5% to 10% from the second quarter; it is 1.01% higher pre-market.

Overnight Asia and Europe

• Nikkei 225: 64,136.25 (+0.33%)
• KOSPI: 6,715.41 (-0.04%)
• Shanghai Composite: 3,875.60 (-0.41%)
• Hang Seng: 24,604.29 (-0.44%)
• DAX: 25,747.84 (+0.82%)
• STOXX 600: 641.76 (+0.73%)
• FTSE 100: 10,757.66 (+0.65%)
• CAC 40: 8,185.55 (+0.55%)

The Nikkei 225 was the only one of the four Asian indices to close higher. All four European indices are up at 8:33am ET, led by the DAX at 0.82%. The Bank of Japan decides on Friday.

Pre-market movers

Prices at about 8:33am ET. Of 262 large US stocks and ETFs with a pre-market print, 218 are higher and 39 lower.

• ARM.US +5.09% to $256.40, the largest gain in the sweep, with LRCX.US +4.24%, AMD.US +3.67%, AMAT.US +3.64% and KLAC.US +3.60%. No company announcements found. SMH.US is 2.58% higher.
• NBIS.US +9.76% to $229.80 after Nebius said it will raise hourly GPU prices from 1 October, with H100, H200 and B200 rates up about 17% to 20%, TradingKey reported.
• FLNC.US -22.10% to $7.05. Fluence Energy cut its fiscal 2026 revenue forecast to about $2.4 billion from $2.9 billion to $3.1 billion, citing manufacturing delays at its Houston facility.
• BE.US +5.01%, VRT.US +4.76% and GEV.US +3.72% among power equipment makers. No company announcements found.
• PANW.US -2.43% and CRM.US -2.25%, the two largest falls in the sweep. Refiners MPC.US (-1.67%) and VLO.US (-1.29%) follow crude lower.
• CRCL.US +4.05%, COIN.US +3.39% and HOOD.US +3.06%, with Bitcoin 1.23% higher. CRCL.US fell 6.78% and HOOD.US 5.46% on Wednesday after the Clarity Act failed a Senate cloture vote.

Commodities, rates and the dollar

WTI futures are US$3.04 below Wednesday's settlement and gold futures US$25 above it.

US economic calendar today (ET)

• Thursday 17 September, 8:30am: Initial jobless claims at 196,000, down from 206,000.
• Thursday 17 September, 8:30am: August housing starts at a 1,275,000 annual rate, down 2.6% from July; single-family starts rose 7.6% to 918,000. Building permits fell 2.7% to 1,394,000.
• Thursday 17 September, 8:30am: The September Philadelphia Fed manufacturing index fell to 37.8 from 47.4, Trading Economics data show, against a 37.0 forecast. Prices paid rose to 48.6 from 40.9.
• Friday 18 September, 9:15am: August industrial production, plus the Bank of Japan decision.

What to watch

• The 10-year yield near 4.96% against Wednesday's 5.006% close, with the Fed projecting one more 2026 hike.
• The Philadelphia Fed prices paid index at 48.6, up 7.7 points in a month.
• WTI at US$99.39 after two sessions of falls.
• SMH.US at +2.58% pre-market, with 218 of 262 large stocks and ETFs higher.

Context only. Not financial advice. Track your own trades with Swingfolio.