Morning BriefNo. 59
Stocks tumble, S&P 500 drops 4.4%; Wall Street's fear gauge jumps to 28.2
In Thursday's session, the Nasdaq Composite lost 5.5%, the Dow fell 3.4%, the 10-year Treasury yield fell to 4.84%, and gold settled at $4,113.50 an ounce.
- S&P 5007,353.73▼ −4.36%
- Nasdaq24,315.00▼ −5.52%
- Dow51,523.06▼ −3.44%
- 10-yr yield4.84%▼ −6 bp
- EUR/USD$1.1224▼ −0.38%
- Gold$4,113.50▲ +0.99%
- WTI crude$90.52▲ +2.72%
- Bitcoin$76,153▼ −5.31%
Stocks
The broad S&P 500 tumbled 4.36% to 7,353.73, its lowest close since July 2026 and its biggest one-day drop since April 4, 2025. The Nasdaq Composite plummeted 5.52%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 3.44% to 51,523.06. Smaller companies lagged: the Russell 2000 plunged 4.45%.
The S&P 500 has gained 7.4% so far in 2026 and stands 5.9% below its record close of 7,818.93, set on October 6, 2026. The Cboe Volatility Index, which tracks expected swings in the S&P 500 over the next 30 days, rocketed to 28.18, above its long-run average of about 19.4.
Rates
The 10-year Treasury yield eased 6 basis points to 4.84%. The 2-year yield slid 12 basis points to 4.46%. At the long end, the 30-year yield eased to 5.25%.
That left the 10-year yield 38 basis points above the 2-year, a steeper curve than a day earlier. The effective federal funds rate — the Fed's main policy rate — stood at 3.88% as of November 4. In the inflation-protected market, the 10-year real yield was 2.64% and the 10-year breakeven rate — a market-implied gauge of expected inflation — was 2.24%, as of Wednesday.
Source: U.S. Department of the Treasury, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
Currencies
The euro retreated 0.38% to $1.1224 in the European Central Bank's daily reference rates, while the dollar crept higher 0.13% against the yen to ¥158.46 and the British pound declined to $1.3459. Overall, the dollar strengthened against six of the nine major currencies we track.
Commodities and bitcoin
U.S. crude oil (WTI) jumped 2.7% to $90.52 a barrel, while Brent, the international benchmark, jumped 3.9% to $98.29 a barrel.
U.S. natural gas futures dipped 0.4% to $2.947 per million British thermal units. Gold rose 1.0% to $4,113.50 an ounce, and silver inched higher 0.2% to $52.38 an ounce. Copper, often watched as a barometer of industrial demand, dropped 2.5% to $6.270 a pound.
Bitcoin tumbled 5.3% to $76,153.
On the calendar
The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes the monthly jobs report at 8:30 a.m. ET.
Coming up
- Tue Nov 108:30 a.m.Consumer Price Index (CPI)Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Fri Nov 138:30 a.m.Producer Price Index (PPI)Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Wed Nov 258:30 a.m.GDP (second estimate)Bureau of Economic Analysis
Chart of the day
Source: S&P Dow Jones Indices.
U.S. home prices rose to 2.1% in August from 1.9% in the prior month. That is up from 1.5% a year earlier. Over the past 10 years it has ranged from -0.3% (May 2023) to 20.8% (March 2022).
What it measures. The 12-month change in the S&P Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index, which tracks repeat sales of the same single-family homes.
Why it matters. Home values are the largest source of wealth for many American households, and they feed directly into affordability for first-time buyers.
The numbers
| Instrument | Last | Chg | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stocks | |||||
| S&P 500 | 7,353.73 | −334.89 | −4.36% | ||
| Nasdaq Composite | 24,315.00 | −1,421.51 | −5.52% | ||
| Dow Jones Industrial Average | 51,523.06 | −1,833.06 | −3.44% | ||
| Russell 2000 | 2,729.89 | −127.06 | −4.45% | ||
| Cboe Volatility Index | 28.18 | +11.57 | +69.66% | ||
| Treasury yields | |||||
| 3-month Treasury bill | 4.17% | −4 bp | — | ||
| 2-year Treasury | 4.46% | −12 bp | — | ||
| 5-year Treasury | 4.59% | −10 bp | — | ||
| 10-year Treasury | 4.84% | −6 bp | — | ||
| 30-year Treasury | 5.25% | −3 bp | — | ||
| Currencies | |||||
| Euro (EUR/USD) | $1.1224 | −0.0043 | −0.38% | ||
| Japanese yen (USD/JPY) | ¥158.46 | +0.21 | +0.13% | ||
| British pound (GBP/USD) | $1.3459 | −0.0041 | −0.30% | ||
| Chinese yuan (USD/CNY) | 6.6684 | −0.0039 | −0.06% | ||
| Canadian dollar (USD/CAD) | 1.3966 | +0.0031 | +0.22% | ||
| Swiss franc (USD/CHF) | 0.8179 | +0.0024 | +0.30% | ||
| Australian dollar (AUD/USD) | $0.7000 | −0.0015 | −0.21% | ||
| Mexican peso (USD/MXN) | 18.5905 | −0.0560 | −0.30% | ||
| Commodities | |||||
| WTI crude oil | $90.52 | +2.40 | +2.72% | ||
| Brent crude oil | $98.29 | +3.67 | +3.88% | ||
| Natural gas | $2.947 | −0.012 | −0.41% | ||
| Gold | $4,113.50 | +40.50 | +0.99% | ||
| Silver | $52.38 | +0.09 | +0.18% | ||
| Copper | $6.270 | −0.159 | −2.47% | ||
| Digital assets | |||||
| Bitcoin | $76,153 | −4,268 | −5.31% | ||
Closing levels for November 5, 2026. Yields in percent; changes in basis points (bp). Currencies are ECB reference rates. Commodities are front-month futures settlements.
Worth reading
Selected coverage from other publishers, chosen for relevance to today's markets.
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- The AI ‘credit card’ is getting costlier as CoreWeave bond yield tops 16%
- Stable Labor Market Keeps Fed on Track to Raise Rates Gradually
- DraftKings’ expensive bet on prediction markets is crushing its stock
- Nasdaq rebounds as chip stocks recover from steep losses
Diurna briefs are compiled from official and exchange data by our publishing system using fixed editorial rules; they describe market moves and do not speculate about causes. This is not investment advice. How we produce the Daily Brief.