Stock market today: Nasdaq futures rebound after brutal sell-off, Dow and S&P 500 wobble as US adds 165K jobs Grace O'Donnell · Editor, Special Projects Updated Fri, November 6, 2026 at 8:59 AM EST 1 min read ^IXIC -5.52% ^DJI -3.44% ^GSPC -4.36% NVDA +4.23% MU +5.59% Explore stocks on Coinbase Trading disclosure Trading disclosure The above button links to Coinbase. Yahoo Finance is not a broker-dealer or investment adviser and does not offer securities or cryptocurrencies for sale or facilitate trading. Coinbase pays us for certain activity generated through this link. Prices displayed are informational.
US stock futures attempted to stabilize on Friday after a post-election rally turned into an artificial intelligence trade meltdown, sending tremors through markets. Investors also assessed a hotter-than-expected October jobs report.
Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (YM=F) fell 0.8%, while those on the S&P 500 (ES=F) rose 0.2%. Contracts for the Nasdaq-100 (NQ=F) rose more than 1.5% after the tech-heavy index slipped into a correction on Thursday.
The major indexes were on track to post substantial losses during the volatile election week that saw the Democrats retake the House and Senate. At the center of Wednesday's deep sell-off, which erased $2.3 trillion in market value, were concerns about a slowdown in data center construction and in AI spending.
The hit chip stocks like Nvidia (NVDA), Micron (MU), AMD (AMD), and Sandisk (SNDK) most directly, but also spilled into broader markets, sending the VIX Volatility Index (^VIX) up 70% to 28.
Oil prices have also been in play, with global benchmark Brent crude (BZ=F) and WTI crude (CL=F) futures falling below $100 per barrel. Energy traders continue to assess the outlook for the war in the Middle East, with the potential for a reescalation weighing on sentiment.
Not to be overshadowed, the Labor Department reported that the US added 165,000 jobs in October, above a revised 60,000 figure the month before and the 65,000 jobs economists expected.
A much stronger-than-expected October jobs report solidifies expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates in December, as officials are already focused on higher inflation.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics report released Friday showed that 165,000 jobs were created in October, compared with expectations for around 70,000, as the unemployment rate edged down to 4.1%, compared with expectations for 4.2%. That's much higher than the average monthly gain of 48,000 over the past 12 months and well above the roughly 30,000 jobs needed to hold employment steady. Labor force participation inched up to a hair above expectations at 61.9%.
Job gains in both August and September were also revised higher by 84,000. The bulk of jobs added were in the sectors of professional and business services, healthcare, and transportation and warehousing. Manufacturing added 19,000 jobs.
The US economy added 165,000 jobs in October, a jump from the revised job growth of 60,000 the month before. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg expected the economy to have added 65,000 jobs.
The unemployment rate ticked down to 4.1%. Wage growth increased 0.4% from September.
If you are looking for something positive after Thursday's shocking stock beatdown, you have come to the right place ahead of the weekend.
History suggests stocks tend to do well after the extreme volatility we saw two days removed from the Election Day blue wave.
The VIX volatility index (^VVIX) — better known as Wall Street's fear gauge — jumped as much as 70% on Thursday. A move this large has only happened eight times since 1991, according to data from CBOE.
Here's what happened to the S&P 500 on average after the eight prior extreme moves:
The stock market's Thursday rout in artificial intelligence boom trade may have been an overreaction to growing political opposition to data center construction, according to one prominent bull.
AI and chip stocks plunged Thursday as major indexes erased their post-midterm election rally. One key worry is that about 45% of planned US data center capacity faces possible restrictions after tallying newly elected state governors who have promised to stop or pause construction, according to Goldman Sachs estimates.
But Yardeni Research is calling those mounting restrictions a setback.
"We view the political backlash as another constraint on AI investment, alongside financial and physical bottlenecks. But these are speed bumps, not roadblocks, even though Wall Street seems to be pricing in the latter," Yardeni Research wrote in a Friday note to clients.
"We think that's overdone," the strategists said, referring to Thursday's sell-off as a "buying opportunity." The firm is sticking with its year-end target of 7,900 on the S&P 500.
Yardeni pointed to Texas, a major data center hub, where newly elected governor Gina Hinojosa said Thursday afternoon in a CNN interview that already permitted projects would be allowed to finish construction.
The distinction matters. Permitted data center projects account for "essentially all of Texas's planned data center capacity in 2027 and likely much of 2028," according to Yardeni.
Employment data scheduled for release on Friday is expected to show the labor market remains steady. Yahoo Finance's Claire Boston previews what to expect from today's jobs report:
Economists surveyed by Bloomberg expect that the economy added 65,000 jobs in October, an improvement from September's underwhelming 29,000 additions. The unemployment rate is expected to hold steady at 4.2%, while wage growth is seen improving 0.3% from September.
Those numbers would be consistent with the "low hire, low fire" environment that has defined the labor market for the past several years. While few companies are hiring aggressively, most aren't conducting major layoffs either.
Recent initial jobless claims have looked "exceptionally benign by historical standards," Bank of America economist Shruti Mishra wrote in a note.
"Despite recent high-profile layoff announcements, the absence of any pickup in claims suggests economy-wide layoffs remain contained," she added.
When President Trump and his allies in Congress moved to end the EV subsidy, automakers braced for a crash in electric car sales. Tesla (TSLA), the US leader, was especially vulnerable because it didn't have gas-powered vehicles to lean on, and keeping prices as low as possible was crucial to competing with EV rivals.
In a new regulatory environment, one that was more hostile to EVs, Tesla used the disappearing $7,500 tax break as an advantage. It lost a valuable subsidy, but used its scale to win a war of attrition, thereby consolidating the market. Other firms needed the subsidy even more, and though Tesla got hurt, the damage was less than its peers' in many ways.
On top of that, a new barrier to entry was in place, and Tesla's competitive moat got wider.
That's a roadmap for how Big Tech could navigate the data center backlash. And it helps explain why many investors are bullish on hyperscaler stocks despite a nationwide referendum against data centers and notable victories from candidates opposing them.
Airbnb (ABNB) stock jumped after hours after the peer-to-peer home rental company touted strong growth across its business and raised its full-year outlook amid healthy global travel demand.
"Airbnb is back in growth mode," CEO Brian Chesky said in a release to investors. "It's rare for a marketplace of our size to reaccelerate growth, but that's exactly what we're doing. In Q3, we delivered our fastest revenue growth in more than three years, with acceleration across our business, including our most established markets."
In the third quarter, Airbnb reported earnings per share of $3.16, surpassing Wall Street analyst estimates of $2.85 per share, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence data. Revenue grew 19% to $4.87 billion, also beating estimates of $4.74 billion.
"In North America, nights booked grew at their fastest pace in four years," the company said. "We're also seeing more guests return to Airbnb, and more people try it for the first time."
The strength of the company's quarter led it to raise its guidance for the remainder of the year.
In the fourth quarter, Airbnb expects revenue to grow 16%-19% to a range of $3.22 billion to $3.28 billion, exceeding the Street's midpoint estimate of $3.16 billion.
For the full year, Airbnb forecasts revenue growth in the high teens and adjusted EBITDA margins to increase to approximately 36%.
Economic data: Change in nonfarm payrolls, October (+55,000 expected, +29,000 prior); Change in private payrolls, October (+55,000 expected, +46,000 prior); Change in manufacturing payrolls, October (0 expected, +9,000 prior); Average hourly earnings, month-on-month, October (+0.3% expected, +0.1% prior); Average hourly earnings, year-on-year, October (+2.9% expected, +3% prior); Unemployment rate, October (4.2% expected, 4.2% prior); Labor force participation rate, October (+61.8% prior); U. Mich. sentiment, November preliminary reading (47.3 expected, 48 prior); U. Mich. current conditions, November preliminary reading (46.7 prior); U. Mich. expectations, November preliminary reading (48.8 prior); U. Mich. 1-year inflation expectation, November preliminary reading (4.7% prior); U. Mich. 5-10 year inflation expectation, November preliminary reading (3.5% prior)
Earnings calendar: Enbridge (ENB), Moderna (MRNA), Brookfield Asset Management (BAM), Humana (HUM), Vistra Corp. (VST), Ubiquiti (UI), Franklin Templeton (BEN), Charter Communications (CHTR)
Catch up on some top stories you might have missed overnight:
Retail traders dump $257 million in stocks in 5th biggest selling day since 2020
Trump pins the market's plunge on Democrats' midterm wins
Dollar lures bids for safety as AI rout grips Asian markets
As high oil prices curb demand, fresh signs of glut appear
The New York Times reportedly in talks to buy Letterboxd for $330 million
