US Pre-Market 2 October 2026: Payrolls +29,000 Miss Forecasts; Nasdaq Futures +0.6%, Nike -7.6%
Sentiment: mixed S&P 500 futures: +0.44%
S&P 500 futures are up 0.44% and Nasdaq 100 futures 0.62% at 8:34am ET on 2 October 2026 after the September jobs report showed 29,000 new payrolls against forecasts of 85,000 to 90,000, and WTI crude fell 3.52% to $89.60 on talk of emergency diesel and crude stock releases. Nike NKE.US is down 7.59% pre-market to $32.44 after first-quarter revenue of $11.21 billion missed the $11.33 billion consensus and it guided to a high-single-digit fall in full-year sales. The weaker jobs data lands with the 10-year Treasury yield at 5.24%, which touched 5.34% on Thursday, its highest since 2002.
Overnight drivers
- Jobs report: September payrolls rose 29,000, unemployment ticked up to 4.2% from 4.1%, and average hourly earnings rose 0.1% for the month and 3.0% over the year against 3.2% expected. July and August were revised down by a combined 60,000. Wage growth came in 0.2 points under forecast in a week when energy-driven inflation fears pushed the 10-year yield to a 24-year high.
- Oil: WTI November is -3.52% to $89.60 and Brent -2.65% to $99.60. EU members discussed a French plan to release 50 million barrels of diesel, and Saudi shipments through the Strait of Hormuz rose to 2.9 million barrels a day in September from 1 million in August. XOM.US is -1.10% and CVX.US -0.57% pre-market.
- Chips and M&A: ON.US is +8.37% and SYNA.US +14.36% after onsemi agreed to buy Synaptics for $123 a share in cash, about $5.7 billion, replacing a June all-stock deal after a rival approach. NVDA.US is +2.17% and AVGO.US +1.51%.
- Crypto: Bitcoin is +3.65% to $86,762. COIN.US is +3.70% and MSTR.US +3.58% pre-market.
September jobs report at 8:30am ET
Nonfarm payrolls rose 29,000 in September 2026, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on 2 October, against an 85,000 Bloomberg consensus and August's revised 133,000.
- Unemployment rate: 4.2% (4.1% expected), 7.1 million unemployed
- Average hourly earnings: +0.1% month on month to $37.81; +3.0% year on year
- Revisions: July cut 31,000 to -10,000; August cut 29,000 to +133,000
- Participation rate: 61.8%
- Health care +17,000, construction +11,000, manufacturing +9,000; financial activities -7,000
Yahoo futures prints in this brief are from 8:34am ET, four minutes after the release. Cash trading opens at 9:30am ET.
Overnight Asia and Europe
Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 2.60% to 23,972.29 on 2 October 2026 in its first session after the 1 October National Day holiday, during which Brent topped $100 and the US 10-year yield touched 5.34%.
- Hang Seng: 23,972.29 (-2.60%)
- Nikkei 225: 68,309.46 (-0.94%), after +3.30% on Thursday
- KOSPI: 7,003.74 (+0.46%)
- STOXX 600: 629.86 (+0.51%) at 8:34am ET
- DAX: 25,164.43 (+0.90%)
- FTSE 100: 10,440.92 (+0.12%)
Tokyo core CPI rose 2.7% in September against a 2.4% forecast and 1.8% in August. Mainland China remains shut for Golden Week.
Thursday's close
The S&P 500 closed at 7,666.45 on 1 October 2026, up 0.19%, as the 10-year yield eased 5 bps to 5.24% after touching 5.34% intraday.
- S&P 500: 7,666.45 (+0.19%)
- Nasdaq Composite: 26,871.60 (+0.04%)
- Dow: 50,926.56 (+0.04%)
- Russell 2000: 2,806.63 (+0.35%)
- VIX: 16.08 this morning (-1.89%)
MU.US closed +3.03% and NVDA.US +1.09%, while GOOGL.US fell 1.70% and AVGO.US 2.15%.
Pre-market movers
| Ticker | Pre-market | Catalyst |
|---|---|---|
| SYNA.US | +14.36% | Revised $123 a share all-cash takeover by onsemi |
| ON.US | +8.37% | Cash deal for Synaptics, backed by $2.45 billion Morgan Stanley financing |
| COIN.US | +3.70% | Bitcoin +3.65% to $86,762 |
| NVDA.US | +2.17% | Follows MU.US, which closed +3.03% Thursday |
| MSFT.US | +1.05% | No company news; Nasdaq 100 futures +0.62% |
| XOM.US | -1.10% | WTI -3.52% on stock release talks |
| NKE.US | -7.59% | Revenue miss; fiscal 2027 EPS guide $1.15 to $1.35 vs $1.61 consensus |
Nike said Greater China sales fell 26% in the quarter and that pulling back on its Dunk line cut about $200 million from Sportswear revenue. NKE.US closed Thursday at $35.15.
US economic calendar today (ET)
- 10:00am ET: Factory orders for August, +0.1% forecast
- 10:00am ET: Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan speaks
- 4:00pm ET: Cash close for the week
What to watch
- 10-year yield: 5.24% at Thursday's close, 10 bps below its 5.34% intraday high; the first cash-session print after the jobs miss
- WTI at $89.60 while the US sends the USS Theodore Roosevelt carrier strike group to the Middle East
- NKE.US at $32.44 pre-market against its $35.15 Thursday close
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