Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq open higher as Treasury yields decline

US stocks snapped a losing streak on September 2 as all three major indexes closed in the green, buoyed by a pullback in Treasury yields that had been pressing against multi-year highs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished at 53,061.95, up 295.07 points, or 0.56%. The S&P 500 added 35.13 points to close at 7,666.60, a gain of 0.46%. The Nasdaq Composite rose 118.05 points to 26,217.83, also up 0.45%.

The 10-year Treasury yield hit 4.818% earlier in the session, its highest level since November 2023, before retreating to roughly 4.78% by the close.

A jobs miss that markets actually liked

The bond market’s reversal traced back to a surprisingly weak labor print. ADP’s private payrolls report showed just 38,000 jobs added in August, well below the expected range of 46,000 to 53,000.

Comments from Federal Reserve officials also helped steady things. New York Fed President John Williams clarified that the rise in yields was mostly a reflection of a robust economy rather than a result of tightening financial conditions. Markets are currently pricing in a 60% to 67% probability of a Fed rate hike in September.

Tech leads the rebound

Nvidia shares surged more than 3%, riding the broader risk-on momentum. Dell Technologies was the session’s standout performer, climbing after the company reported strong earnings and raised its outlook.

The bond market’s uneasy truce

Treasury yields had been climbing steadily in recent weeks, driven by persistent inflation concerns, geopolitical tensions stemming from escalating U.S.-Iran relations, and speculation that the Fed wasn’t done tightening. The 10-year yield’s push above 4.8% earlier in the day was a psychological threshold that made equity investors visibly nervous.

What to watch from here

The official August jobs report, due later this week, will either confirm the ADP’s picture of cooling employment or contradict it entirely. Beyond labor data, oil prices remain a wild card, as energy costs feed directly into inflation readings and any geopolitical escalation that sends crude higher could reignite the bond selloff. With rate-hike odds hovering in the 60% to 67% range, Fed communications will also be critical heading into September’s meeting.

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