US Market Wrap 1 September: Nasdaq 100 Falls 1.29 Percent as WTI Jumps 5.88 Percent After Fresh US Strikes on Iran
US stocks fell across the board on Tuesday, the first trading day of September, after the United States carried out fresh strikes against Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps targets inside Iran, a move that pushed crude oil more than 5 percent higher and sent all 5 major benchmarks lower. The Nasdaq 100 posted the steepest decline of the 5, down 1.29 percent, followed by the Russell 2000 at 1.23 percent, the Nasdaq Composite at 1.03 percent, the Dow Jones Industrial Average at 0.79 percent and the S&P 500 at 0.71 percent. Energy led the S&P 500’s 11 sectors, rising 1.54 percent to a fresh 52 week high, as West Texas Intermediate was quoted 5.88 percent higher, on our calculation, and the CBOE Volatility Index jumped 9.52 percent.
A Broad Retreat Across the 5 Major Benchmarks
The S&P 500 fell 0.71 percent to 7,631.47, the Dow 0.79 percent to 52,766.88, the Nasdaq Composite 1.03 percent to 26,099.77, the Russell 2000 1.23 percent to 2,920.13 and the Nasdaq 100 1.29 percent to 29,077.22, a spread of 0.58 percentage points between the board’s best and worst performer, on our calculation.
Breadth was weak beneath the headline numbers. The S&P 500 recorded 12 new 52 week lows against 7 new 52 week highs on Tuesday. Nike touched 38.07 dollars, its lowest level in more than two decades, and travel and leisure names including Wynn Resorts, Las Vegas Sands, VICI Properties and Carnival also set new lows. Energy and healthcare names moved the other way: Pfizer reached 29.09 dollars, a level not seen since October 2024, and Marathon Petroleum traded at 381.15 dollars, its highest since June 2011, all according to CNBC.
| Index | Close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 | 7,631.47 | -0.71% |
| Dow Jones Industrial Average | 52,766.88 | -0.79% |
| Nasdaq Composite | 26,099.77 | -1.03% |
| Russell 2000 | 2,920.13 | -1.23% |
| Nasdaq 100 | 29,077.22 | -1.29% |
Closes for Tuesday 1 September 2026, ranked by change, confirmed in a re-pull approximately 20 minutes after the 4:00pm ET close.
Energy Leads 4 Advancing Sectors as Construction Spending Falls and AI Names Retreat
Energy was the S&P 500’s standout, up 1.54 percent to a fresh 52 week high; Utilities, Health Care and Consumer Staples were the only other sectors higher, adding 0.85 percent, 0.66 percent and 0.23 percent respectively. The remaining 7 sectors fell, led down by Consumer Discretionary at 1.89 percent and Industrials at 1.39 percent, a spread of 3.43 percentage points between the board’s best and worst sector, on our calculation.
Consumer Discretionary’s decline coincided with weaker housing data: the US Census Bureau reported construction spending fell 0.5 percent in July to its lowest level since October 2023. The iShares US Home Construction ETF lost almost 2 percent, Builders FirstSource slid 4 percent, LGI Homes fell 3 percent and Home Depot, a Dow component, fell 2 percent. Information Technology also fell, down 1.00 percent, as investors pulled back from artificial intelligence infrastructure names: Teradyne fell 5 percent, Lumentum more than 5 percent and Coherent 2 percent. Apple moved the other way, rising nearly 3 percent on its first trading day with John Ternus as chief executive; Ternus succeeded Tim Cook, who moved to the role of executive chairman after around 15 years leading the company, under a succession plan Apple had announced in April.
| S&P 500 sector | Close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 986.73 | +1.54% |
| Utilities | 430.48 | +0.85% |
| Health Care | 1,997.47 | +0.66% |
| Consumer Staples | 935.65 | +0.23% |
| Real Estate | 280.56 | -0.11% |
| Communication Services | 448.59 | -0.53% |
| Financials | 949.89 | -0.88% |
| Information Technology | 6,889.66 | -1.00% |
| Materials | 654.67 | -1.36% |
| Industrials | 1,459.29 | -1.39% |
| Consumer Discretionary | 1,884.38 | -1.89% |
Sector closes for 1 September 2026, ranked by change. Energy’s close is a new 52 week high.
Treasury Yields Rise Across the Curve as ISM and JOLTS Data Come In Close to Expectations
The Institute for Supply Management’s Manufacturing Index eased to 54.6 in August, a point below July and slightly under the Dow Jones consensus of 55.3. Separately, the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey showed openings rising to 7.27 million in July, roughly in line with the forecast, while hiring fell to its lowest rate since February.
The US Treasury’s official daily par yield curve for 1 September, published after Tuesday’s close, was higher across every maturity shown except the 1 month bill, which was flat. The 3 year and 5 year yields rose the most among the 9 maturities shown in our table, each up 6 basis points, on our calculation; they also recorded the largest increase across the fuller 14 maturity curve published by the Treasury, indicating the belly of the curve led the move.
| Maturity | 1 Sep | 31 Aug | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Month | 3.85% | 3.85% | 0 bp |
| 3 Month | 3.92% | 3.91% | +1 bp |
| 6 Month | 4.00% | 3.99% | +1 bp |
| 1 Year | 4.18% | 4.16% | +2 bp |
| 2 Year | 4.39% | 4.34% | +5 bp |
| 3 Year | 4.46% | 4.40% | +6 bp |
| 5 Year | 4.55% | 4.49% | +6 bp |
| 10 Year | 4.79% | 4.75% | +4 bp |
| 30 Year | 5.27% | 5.25% | +2 bp |
Official daily par yield curve, US Department of the Treasury, derived from indicative bid side quotations at or near 3:30pm on each trading day. Changes are on our calculation, by subtraction.
Oil Extends Its Post Strike Gain While Gold and Silver Fall
US Central Command said in a statement, quoted by CNBC, that US forces “began striking Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targets in Iran,” and that the strikes followed “recent attempted attacks by the IRGC against commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and against American service members deployed to the region.” West Texas Intermediate was quoted 5.88 percent higher and Brent crude 5.47 percent higher, both on our calculation, extending gains that had already lifted crude through the Asian and European sessions. Gold eased 2.35 percent and silver 3.43 percent, a divergence from the oil market’s advance.
| Commodity | Level | Change |
|---|---|---|
| WTI Crude, NYMEX (Oct’26), dollars a barrel | $90.69 | +5.88% |
| Brent Crude, ICE (Nov’26), dollars a barrel | $95.20 | +5.47% |
| Gold, COMEX (Dec’26), dollars an ounce | $4,374.90 | -2.35% |
| Silver, COMEX (Dec’26), dollars an ounce | $64.69 | -3.43% |
Quotes captured shortly after the US close on 1 September 2026. These are quoted levels, not exchange settlements. WTI, Brent and gold changes are on our calculation against the quoted levels in our 31 August 2026 Commodities Wrap. Silver’s change is its own reported change against its new front month contract’s previous close, since the contract rolled to December since the 31 August edition.
The dollar strengthened broadly against the currencies on this board: the US Dollar Index rose 0.26 percent and the yen weakened 0.30 percent against the dollar, trading through the closely watched 160 per dollar level, while the euro fell 0.23 percent and the pound 0.28 percent against the dollar. The CBOE Volatility Index jumped 9.52 percent, its steepest move on this board, and Bitcoin fell 2.04 percent.
| Instrument | Level | Change |
|---|---|---|
| CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) | 16.34 | +9.52% |
| Dollar/yen | 160.21 | +0.30% |
| US Dollar Index (DXY) | 99.683 | +0.26% |
| Euro/dollar | 1.1589 | -0.23% |
| Pound/dollar | 1.3509 | -0.28% |
| Bitcoin, dollars | $77,394.30 | -2.04% |
Intraday quotes from the same capture, shortly after the US close on 1 September 2026, measured against each instrument’s own previous close. A rise in dollar/yen is a weaker yen.
Elsewhere Today
| Index | Close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| EGX 70 EWI (Egypt) | 21,318.22 | +2.03% |
| EGX 100 EWI (Egypt) | 27,735.23 | +1.73% |
| EGX 30 (Egypt) | 55,431.29 | +1.03% |
| ASE Index (Jordan) | 4,023.63 | +0.58% |
| QE Index (Qatar) | 9,852.83 | +0.47% |
| QE All Share (Qatar) | 3,867.89 | +0.46% |
| Nomu Parallel Market (Saudi Arabia) | 21,846.16 | +0.45% |
| Bahrain All Share (Bahrain) | 1,940.67 | +0.24% |
| Premier Market (Kuwait) | 9,297.00 | +0.09% |
| MSX 30 (Oman) | 7,610.998 | +0.09% |
| Kuwait All Share (Kuwait) | 8,903.72 | +0.07% |
| DFM General (Dubai) | 5,834.25 | -0.03% |
| Tadawul All Share (Saudi Arabia) | 11,100.74 | -0.24% |
| FTSE ADX General (Abu Dhabi) | 9,974.41 | -0.33% |
| MSCI Tadawul 30 (Saudi Arabia) | 1,493.19 | -0.41% |
Tuesday 1 September 2026 closes, carried verbatim from our Middle East Market Wrap of 1 September 2026, for reference.
| Index | Close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| PSI 20 (Portugal) | 9,478.42 | +0.44% |
| SMI (Switzerland) | 14,334.79 | +0.34% |
| BEL 20 (Belgium) | 5,830.29 | -0.07% |
| FTSE 100 (United Kingdom) | 10,789.28 | -0.32% |
| AEX (Netherlands) | 1,101.92 | -0.35% |
| CAC 40 (France) | 8,301.85 | -0.39% |
| Stoxx Europe 600 (Europe) | 647.46 | -0.56% |
| IBEX 35 (Spain) | 19,824.00 | -0.75% |
| Euro Stoxx 50 (euro area) | 6,368.98 | -0.80% |
| DAX (Germany), Xetra close | 25,970.11 | -1.10% |
| OMXS30 (Sweden) | 3,266.43 | -1.29% |
| FTSE MIB (Italy) | 51,915.18 | -1.33% |
Tuesday 1 September 2026 closes, carried verbatim from our Europe Market Wrap of 1 September 2026, for reference.
| Index | Close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Taiex (Taiwan) | 46,948.72 | +1.78% |
| Topix (Japan) | 4,181.86 | +0.62% |
| Kospi (South Korea) | 6,835.80 | +0.23% |
| Nifty 50 (India) | 24,055.80 | -0.10% |
| S&P/ASX 200 (Australia) | 9,066.70 | -0.10% |
| Nikkei 225 (Japan) | 66,215.34 | -0.15% |
| Shanghai Composite (China) | 3,979.89 | -0.16% |
| Straits Times (Singapore) | 5,710.37 | -0.78% |
| Hang Seng (Hong Kong) | 25,329.73 | -0.93% |
| Shenzhen Component (China) | 13,872.38 | -1.02% |
Tuesday 1 September 2026 closes, carried verbatim from our Asia Market Wrap of 1 September 2026, for reference.
Why It Matters
Tuesday’s clearest divide was between crude and energy exposure on one side and the broader equity and rate sensitive complex on the other. Energy led the S&P 500’s sectors as crude surged, and was the only sector to reach a fresh 52 week high, while all 5 major benchmarks and 7 of the 11 sectors fell. Crude itself moved further and faster than equities, up more than 5 percent on both benchmark grades on our house basis calculation, a narrower and more mechanical response than a broad flight to safety would produce.
Gold and silver falling on the same day is, on our reading, the clearest sign of that narrowness. Precious metals are often treated as a hedge against geopolitical escalation, yet both fell, on our calculation, even as the dollar strengthened and Treasury yields rose across the curve. On this single session’s evidence, that combination is more consistent with higher for longer interest rate expectations dominating the pricing of non energy assets than with the strikes being read as a broader risk event, though one day’s data cannot establish which force will dominate going forward.
The rate story and the growth sensitive parts of the market moved together. Information Technology, Consumer Discretionary and Industrials, 3 of the more rate sensitive sectors, were among the session’s worst performers, while the 3 year and 5 year Treasury yields rose more than any other maturity in our 9 row table, each up 6 basis points. Whether that pattern holds depends on data still to come this week.
Outlook
The ISM Services PMI for August is due Thursday 3 September at 10:00am ET, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Employment Situation report for August, covering nonfarm payrolls and the unemployment rate, is due Friday 4 September at 8:30am ET; both will be the next tests of whether the labor market is cooling enough to offset the inflation risk from higher energy prices. C3.ai is scheduled to report earnings Wednesday and UiPath Thursday, both facing unusually high short interest heading in, according to S3 Partners. Markets will also continue to watch for any further US or Iranian military action, after Tuesday’s strikes followed direct exchanges between the two countries on Sunday.
Sources: CNBC, US index closes, S&P 500 sector index closes, individual stock and 52 week high/low data, commodity, currency, VIX and Bitcoin quotes, and its direct quotation of a US Central Command statement on strikes against Iranian targets, all 1 September 2026; US Department of the Treasury, daily par yield curve for 1 September and 31 August 2026; Institute for Supply Management, Manufacturing PMI for August 2026; US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey for July 2026; US Census Bureau, construction spending for July 2026; S3 Partners, short interest data; The Edge, Middle East, Europe and Asia Market Wraps covering the 1 September 2026 session.
