Tech Pressure Persists but Broader Market Climbs
Published as of: November 5, 2026, 9:14 a.m. ET
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| The markets | Last price | Change | % change |
|---|---|---|---|
| S&P 500® Index | 7,688.62 | +119.70 | +1.58% |
| Dow Jones Industrial Average® | 53,356.12 | +1,569.40 | +3.03% |
| Nasdaq Composite® | 25,736.51 | +364.50 | +1.44% |
| 10-year Treasury yield | 4.90% | +0.01 | -- |
| U.S. Dollar Index | 101.62 | +0.06 | +0.06% |
| Cboe Volatility Index® | 16.81 | +0.20 | +1.20% |
| Gold | $4,134.80 | +$62.30 | +1.53% |
| WTI Crude Oil | $89.10 | +$1.02 | +1.16% |
| Bitcoin | $80,030 | -$305 | -0.38% |
(Thursday market open) Election fallout spilled into Thursday's early trading one day before key jobs data, driving a divergence between sliding chip and AI stocks and soaring consumer names. Major indexes were mixed to start the day, with the broader market up and the tech-packed Nasdaq lower.
Checking data, the government reported a solid 3.6% annual increase in third quarter productivity, its first estimate, compared with an upwardly revised 2.1% in the second quarter. Unit labor costs fell 0.7%. This might draw the Federal Reserve's attention as Chairman Kevin Warsh theorized that AI could help the economy grow more efficiently. Overseas, the Bank of England raised rates and warned of high inflation, though Brent crude fell 19% over the three days this week, the sharpest drop since the pandemic.
Wall Street greeted Democrats' seismic victory by rebounding forcefully Wednesday. Consumer discretionary led all sectors, up 4%, as yields and crude oil fell sharply on hopes for fiscal discipline and progress ending the war. Missing the rally were many AI-related firms down on worries of slower data center growth. Nine of 11 sectors rose, with airlines, banks, retailers, restaurants, cruise lines, and homebuilders sharing the exuberance.
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Three things to watch
- Jobs report preview: Expectations for tomorrow's 8:30 a.m. ET October nonfarm payrolls stand at 65,000 for job gains versus 29,000 in September and unchanged unemployment at 4.2%. Wage growth is seen rebounding to 0.3% from 0.1% in September. While the report might have implications for monetary policy, inflation is probably the bigger trigger considering recent pricing pressure. Monthly jobs growth is light at an average of 45,000 per month over the last year, but not weak enough to necessarily divert the Fed's inflation focus. "The labor market could move the needle for the December FOMC meeting, but another pause is likely predicated on a much weaker jobs report," said Liz Ann Sonders, chief investment strategist at the Schwab Center for Financial Research (SCFR). Beyond headlines, investors could check labor force participation—steady at 61.8% in September—and the number of people in the labor force who currently want a job, little changed that month. September job openings jumped for the first time in months, suggesting demand for workers. Better-than-expected labor force results might improve consumer sentiment.
- Next, the debt ceiling debate: The same old issues face Congress next Monday when its lame duck session starts. "At the top of the to-do list is a looming December 11 deadline for government funding that could produce a government shutdown," said Michael Townsend, managing director, legal and government affairs at Schwab. Next year's debt ceiling fight is "the biggest potential market-moving issue looming" probably in the first half of 2027, he said. Volatility could accelerate if politicians tangle over it, and past instances put stocks into a skid and raised yields. There's never been a U.S. default, but the country's credit rating was hurt by past battles. The biggest industry losers of the election, Townsend said, were data centers and the companies that need them, thanks to the public backlash that partly drove the Democratic victory. A slowdown in the data center build rate could loom, along with possible mandates that companies cover infrastructure and grid upgrade costs along with electricity and water.
- Consumers face holidays: Tomorrow's jobs report and the market's path ahead could shape holiday shopping expectations. Last month, personal spending data was weak, raising concern. And the "low hire, low fire" labor market of the last year means layoffs and jobless claims are low but so is wage growth, perhaps making middle income consumers reluctant to spend. Average September hourly earnings growth didn't match inflation. There's also the wealth effect with tech stocks in correction. This could make even wealthier consumers a bit less enthusiastic about Black Friday. The heart of retail earnings season lies ahead, perhaps giving insight of consumer response to high gas and food prices. Target (TGT) and Walmart (WMT) report later this month. Earlier retail earnings sent mixed messages, with Shopify's (SHOP) revenue growth missing estimates and Amazon's (AMZN) retail results disappointing. However, Amazon had tough comparisons due to a date change in its Prime Day promotion. The National Retail Federation predicts holiday sales will grow 4.2% this year after 3.1% growth last year. That isn't adjusted for inflation, however, and investors should watch retail hiring trends, sometimes a clue of demand.
Crypto currents
The Clarity Act under Democratic leadership: The crypto industry spent $68 million in hopes of defeating Ohio's Sherrod Brown in his Senate race, according to Reuters, and with the Democratic rout on Tuesday, Brown now looks poised to become chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee, while Senator Elizabeth Warren looks set to take over the Banking Committee. Both are crypto critics whose committees have jurisdiction over the industry. But Democratic leadership doesn't mean the Clarity Act market structure bill is dead. It was only narrowly defeated in the Senate in September, and plenty of Democrats want to pass a crypto regulatory framework, albeit one that may be tougher on crypto companies and addresses ethics concerns surrounding the president, Townsend said. "I think that's a place where you may see some bipartisanship to get that across the finish line next year," he said.
" id="body_disclosure--media_disclosure--294206" >The Clarity Act under Democratic leadership: The crypto industry spent $68 million in hopes of defeating Ohio's Sherrod Brown in his Senate race, according to Reuters, and with the Democratic rout on Tuesday, Brown now looks poised to become chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee, while Senator Elizabeth Warren looks set to take over the Banking Committee. Both are crypto critics whose committees have jurisdiction over the industry. But Democratic leadership doesn't mean the Clarity Act market structure bill is dead. It was only narrowly defeated in the Senate in September, and plenty of Democrats want to pass a crypto regulatory framework, albeit one that may be tougher on crypto companies and addresses ethics concerns surrounding the president, Townsend said. "I think that's a place where you may see some bipartisanship to get that across the finish line next year," he said.
On the move
- AppLovin (APP) surged more than 20% ahead of the open, fired up by earnings for the mobile ad technology platform that easily topped estimates on an AI tailwind and the announcement of a $3.2 billion buyback program. Revenue growth was 55.5% annually.
- Arm Holdings (ARM) fell 6.7% early despite beating estimates on both revenue and earnings, and gave in-line guidance. This didn't enthuse investors hoping for stronger outlooks from tech.
- Qualcomm (QCOM) fell nearly 10% early after yesterday's results. Like Arm, it provided earnings and revenue that slightly beat expectations and that guidance met consensus views. High memory chip prices continue to hurt phone demand, a headwind for Qualcomm.
- Chip and AI-related stocks were mostly lower early Thursday, taking their cues from Arm and Qualcomm. Worries that chip demand could slow if data center demand gets clipped by new U.S. regulations hurt memory chip firms SK Hynix (SKHY), Western Digital (WDC), and Micron (MU), all down 4.5% or more ahead of the open. Broadcom (AVGO) and Nvidia (NVDA) kept slumping.
- SpaceX (SPCX) and Tesla (TSLA) lost another 2% each early Thursday, with SpaceX touching two-month lows, as election fallout continued on concerns about the impact of Democratic control on CEO Elon Musk.
- Amazon (AMZN), Microsoft (MSFT), and Alphabet (GOOGL), the trio of "hyperscalers" that rose sharply yesterday amid hopes they'd spend less on the data center buildout, rose again early today. Expected tighter regulations from Democratic governors, lower crude, and lower yields mean heavy spending might slow, helping finances.
- Snap (SNAP) fell 10.6% after missing estimates for third quarter revenue and user growth, though earnings per share topped expectations.
- Gold rose another 1% early, continuing the rally that began with the election as Treasury yields fell. Crude, which dropped yesterday, rose more than 1% early despite hopes for progress on geopolitics.
- Wendy's (WEN) added 2.3% after the company rejected a takeover attempt.
- Cava Group (CAVA) tumbled 7.8% following an earnings report that missed Wall Stret's expectations for the Mediterranean fast-casual chain. An outbreak of Cyclospora during the quarter hurt results.
- Other consumer and cyclical names up early Thursday included Uber (UBER), Costco (COST), bank stocks, and Walmart (WMT).
- Zillow (Z) fell almost 9% before the open as earnings per share missed estimates in a weak housing market.
- Crypto-related stocks slid early amid fallout from the election and worries about a tougher regulatory climate.
More insights from Schwab
Election impact assessed: The Democrats' win sets up a series of tricky policy fights in the months ahead, including a potential government shutdown, the debt ceiling, cryptocurrency regulation, data centers, and more. Dive deeper into policy and market implications with Schwab's Townsend in his post-election analysis.
Surface calm belies churn below: Year to date, major equity indexes are sitting on double-digit gains and relatively tame maximum drawdowns, which gives the illusion that the market has been in a relatively calm state. Intense churn and rotation under the surface underscore that we are increasingly seeing a market of stocks as opposed to a stock market, which is not without potential opportunity, note Schwab's Sonders and Kevin Gordon, head of macro research and strategy at SCFR, in their newest look at the markets.
Love and marriage and…financial benefits? While getting married isn't a financial decision, it can have major financial consequences. And it's not just about spending and saving. From taxes and Social Security to retirement accounts and estate planning, marriage changes the rules in ways that can help some couples and surprise others. There are some important things to consider.
Chart of the day
Data source: CME Group. Chart source: thinkorswim® platform.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
For illustrative purposes only.
WTI crude oil futures (/CL—candlesticks) have fallen about 15% this week amid rising hopes for an end to the Iran war. The price has been volatile since the start of the war, and sliced through a months-long trendline on Wednesday after Democrats won control of Congress. A rising 50-week moving average sits about $6 below closing price during Wednesday's regular session.
The week ahead
Thursday November 5: Third quarter productivity-preliminary, Challenger job cuts, and expected morning earnings from ConocoPhillips (COP), Sony Group (SONY), Southern (SO), Duke Energy (DUK). Expected afternoon earnings from Cloudflare (NET), Airbnb (ABNB), and Monster Beverage (MNST).
Friday, November 6: October nonfarm payrolls, October unemployment, preliminary November University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment, and expected morning earnings from Enbridge (ENB), Moderna (MRNA), Humana (HUM), and Vistra (VST).
Monday, November 9: Expected morning earnings from Constellation Energy (CEG) and Barrick Mining (B). Expected afternoon earnings from Occidental Petroleum (OXY) and Rocket Lab (RKLB).
Tuesday, November 10: October CPI and core CPI and expected afternoon earnings from CoreWeave (CRWV) and Rigetti Computing (RGTI).
Wednesday, November 11: No major earnings or data expected. U.S. bond market closed for Veterans Day.
Thursday, November 12: October existing home sales and expected morning earnings from Brookfield (BN) and Nebius (NBIS). Expected afternoon earnings from Cisco (CSCO) and Applied Materials (AMAT).