Wall Street opened on Wednesday, September 3rd, in positive territory, with the Dow Jones gaining 0.60% to 53,380.90 points, the S&P 500 rising 0.63% to 7,715.28 points and the Nasdaq leading gains with a 0.73% climb to 26,409.79 points. Optimism was driven by contradictory signals from Washington regarding the conflict with Iran, with Donald Trump privately considering declaring an end to attacks, while the Pentagon quietly extended troop rotations in the Middle East until 2027. During the night, Iran attacked a U.S. base in Kuwait, but local air defenses successfully intercepted the hostile drones and missiles.
The day was marked by anticipation around U.S. services activity data, a sector that accounts for approximately three quarters of the American economy. The extensive flow of corporate earnings dictated mixed reactions, with Snowflake and Netskope's jumps standing out, contrasting with declines from Campbell's, HPE and NetApp. Nvidia announced the acquisition of an artificial intelligence platform.
On U.S. Treasury bonds, yields declined: the 10-year yield fell 2.50 basis points to 4.76%, the 2-year dropped 4.54 basis points to 4.33% and the 30-year fell 2.22 basis points to 5.24%. The decline in yields boosted equity markets, after Fed Governor Christopher Waller expressed optimism by indicating that price pressures were showing signs of improvement, adding that he would be willing to support keeping interest rates on hold.
Oil traded higher, with WTI adding 0.85% to $91.78 per barrel and Brent advancing 0.63% to $96.23. Analysts at MTrader and BCP noted that signals of a possible rapid end to the conflict, combined with the retreat in Treasury yields, gave Wall Street a moment of respite.
