Market Brief — September 3, 2026

U.S. equities rallied after stronger services data and dovish-leaning Fed commentary, with the S&P 500 (SPX) up 1.1%, the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) up 1.4%, and the Dow (DJIA) up 1.2%. In Europe, indices also advanced as the FTSE 100 (UKX) gained 0.7%, the DAX (DAX) rose 0.6%, and the CAC 40 (FRA40) edged up 0.1%. In Asia, the Shanghai Composite (000001.SS) ended flat on the day (0.0%).

The U.S. goods and services trade deficit widened to $88.6 billion in July 2026, a 24.4% increase from June, as imports rose 2.8% to $399.3 billion and exports fell 2.1% to $310.7 billion, with capital-goods imports up 11.4% on surging computer and accessory inflows. The ISM Services PMI for August printed 55.4 versus 54.1 previously and consensus of 54.3, while Fed Governor Christopher Waller said he would favor holding the federal funds rate at the September 15-16 meeting if inflation keeps cooling, comments that cut CME FedWatch hike odds to about 51% and pushed the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield down roughly 4 basis points to 4.76%. Australia's July trade surplus came in at A$1.923 billion versus A$2.341 billion previously and an A$1.40 billion consensus, and Freddie Mac reported U.S. 30-year and 15-year mortgage rates rising to 6.71% and 6.04%, respectively.

Snowflake (SNOW) reported Q2 revenue of $1.55 billion, up 35% year over year, and raised FY2027 product-revenue guidance to $6.07 billion from $5.84 billion while holding net revenue retention at 126% and building roughly $9 billion of remaining performance obligations, sending the stock up about 23% in after-hours trading. Fed Governor Christopher Waller's dovish comments helped lift Bitcoin (BTCUSD) above $81,000, with prices reaching between $81,200 and $81,364 as two-year Treasury yields eased to about 4.33% to 4.36% and U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $101 million of net inflows after $236 million of outflows the prior day. UBS published a client note arguing that 'physical AI' has arrived and highlighted sensor firms SYNA, OUST and LAZR, edge-computing names NVDA, ARM and AMD, and automation suppliers ROK and ABB as plays on the theme, while separate reports detailed U.S. Treasury plans to restrict Banque Misr's UAE branches and Cliffwater's cap on redemptions at 5% in its $31 billion corporate lending fund after 16% of shares were submitted for exit. AbbVie completed its acquisition of Apogee Therapeutics, while CollPlant closed its purchase of LightSolver as it entered the photonic-computing sector. Other completed deals included Arxis buying Schatz Bearing and StratEdge, Truelink Capital acquiring JT Thorpe Group, Hillman acquiring Kanebridge, HF Foods Group purchasing Searay Foods, FG Communities closing an acquisition in Easley, South Carolina, and Morocco Strategic Minerals selling an initial 51% stake in the Sakami property in Québec. Newly announced transactions included BUUU Group Limited agreeing to acquire a majority stake in Brightray Science alongside over $60 million of private placements, and Xpect Solutions agreeing to acquire Amivero to expand its national-security IT capabilities.