JBizNews U.S. Market Opening Recap — September 2, 2026 | 10:00 A.M. ET
Wall Street opened mixed Wednesday as investors tried to balance softer U.S. hiring data and another burst of AI optimism against renewed U.S.-Iran fighting, oil near $90 a barrel and Treasury yields hovering near their highest levels in almost three years.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average opened at 52,829.58, up 62.7 points, or 0.12%. The S&P 500 opened at 7,634.58, up 3.1 points, or 0.04%, while the Nasdaq Composite opened at 26,094.00, down 5.8 points, or 0.02%. By shortly before 10 a.m., buying had strengthened somewhat: the Dow was ahead roughly 189 points, or 0.4%, the S&P 500 was up about 0.1%, and the Nasdaq remained down roughly 0.1%.
The morning’s biggest economic report was a clear sign that hiring is losing momentum. ADP said private employers added just 38,000 jobs in August, below the 48,000 economists expected and down from an upwardly revised 46,000 in July. Education and health services added 45,000 jobs, construction added 12,000 and leisure and hospitality added 16,000, but manufacturing lost 17,000 jobs and professional and business services lost 16,000. The report increases the stakes for Friday’s official August employment report, where economists currently expect nonfarm payrolls to rebound by about 56,000 and unemployment to remain near 4.1%.
The softer employment number would normally push investors toward expectations for easier Federal Reserve policy. This morning, however, that effect is being offset by the inflation threat coming from energy and bonds.
The 10-year Treasury yield was around 4.8%, after touching roughly 4.82%, its highest level since late 2023. A further move toward 5% would become increasingly important for stocks because higher bond yields make equities less attractive, increase corporate financing costs and put particular pressure on highly valued growth and AI shares.
Oil remains the other major market risk. Brent crude had surged as high as $97.04 a barrel overnight and U.S. crude reached $92.29 after the United States and Iran exchanged their most significant military attacks in weeks. Prices later eased, with Brent around $94.22 and West Texas Intermediate near $89.51, after U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said more than 17 million barrels of oil had moved through the Strait of Hormuz Monday. The Strait remains the central risk: any serious disruption could quickly push crude back toward or above $100 and intensify inflation pressure.
Corporate earnings are providing an important counterweight.
Dell Technologies jumped nearly 11% after dramatically raising its annual outlook on surging demand for AI servers. Dell reported record quarterly revenue of $47 billion, above Wall Street expectations, with a record $60 billion of AI-related orders and a $95 billion backlog. The company raised its annual revenue forecast to $192 billion from $167 billion and lifted its adjusted earnings target to $25.50 a share from $17.90. Super Micro Computer and Hewlett Packard Enterprise also moved higher on the read-through for AI infrastructure spending.
GitLab surged more than 20% after beating earnings and revenue expectations and raising its full-year outlook, reinforcing the idea that AI-driven software development is creating winners beyond the semiconductor sector.
The other side of that trade is MongoDB, which fell roughly 13% despite reporting better-than-expected earnings and 30% revenue growth. Investors focused instead on Atlas cloud growth holding near 29%, showing how demanding Wall Street has become toward richly valued AI and cloud companies. Credo Technology also dropped about 11%, while Palo Alto Networks slipped following earnings.
Another major corporate development came from Uber, which said it will eliminate about 3,300 jobs — roughly 10% of its workforce — in its largest round of cuts since the pandemic. Uber said the restructuring will flatten management and speed decision-making as robotaxi competition grows. The company plans to invest more than $10 billion in autonomous-vehicle technology and partnerships in coming years. Uber shares were up more than 2% before the opening bell.
One additional economic release is arriving right at the 10 a.m. cutoff: the Commerce Department’s July factory-orders report. Consensus expectations call for roughly a 0.6% to 0.7% increase after June’s 0.3% decline. The Census Bureau had not yet populated the new July figure on its official release page at the exact cutoff for this recap, so JBizNews is not inserting an unverified number.
For the rest of Wednesday, investors have several major items to watch.
At 10:30 a.m. ET, the Energy Information Administration releases weekly U.S. crude inventories, which could move oil sharply given current Middle East tensions. At 2 p.m. ET, the Federal Reserve releases its Beige Book, giving investors a fresh look at business conditions, hiring and inflation across the country.
Technology investors will also be watching Broadcom’s earnings, while the broader market will remain focused on whether the 10-year Treasury yield moves closer to 5%.
The bigger test arrives Friday with the August jobs report.
For now, Wall Street is caught between two opposing messages: the labor market is cooling, which normally argues against tighter monetary policy, while oil and bond yields are rising, which argues that inflation may remain too strong for the Federal Reserve to relax.
That tension — jobs versus inflation — is likely to determine whether Wednesday’s early Dow rebound holds.
JBizNews Desk | New York
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