The Morning Briefing · Saturday, 3 October 2026 · Published 07:10 CET · 5-minute read
Good morning. A surprisingly weak US jobs report turned Friday into a relief rally, as investors bet the Federal Reserve will hold off on another rate hike. Here is what moved your money this week, and what is coming next.
☕ Today in 30 seconds
- US hiring stalls. Only 29,000 jobs were added in September, cooling bets on a Fed rate hike.
- Stocks rally. Wall Street and Europe bounced, though European shares still had their worst week since April.
- Eurozone inflation hits 3.8%. Energy prices are the main driver, up 18.8% in a year.
- G7 taps reserves. 100 million barrels of oil and diesel will be released over four months to ease fuel prices.
📈 Markets
| Index/Asset | Last close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 | ↑ higher | +0.7% |
| Nasdaq Composite | ↑ higher | +1.2% |
| Dow Jones | ↑ higher | +0.5% |
| Euro Stoxx 50 | ↑ higher | ↑ higher |
| IBEX 35 | 19,085.3 | +0.42% |
| Brent crude | Above $100 | ↓ lower |
| Gold | Above $4,100/oz | ↓ lower |
| EUR/USD | ↓ weaker on the week | Dollar up vs euro |
| US 10-year yield | Near 5.3% | ↑ slightly higher |
Friday’s gains were led by technology shares, with Nvidia touching a record high. In Europe, the rebound came after a sharp sell-off driven by rising government bond yields: the IBEX 35 still lost about 3% on the week, its worst since April (Yahoo Finance).
🌍 Economy
The US jobs engine nearly stalled in September. Employers added just 29,000 jobs, well below forecasts of roughly 85,000–90,000, and the unemployment rate rose to 4.2%. Earlier months were revised down by a combined 60,000, with July now showing a small loss, and hourly pay rose only 0.1% on the month, or 3.0% on the year. Traders sharply cut the odds of a Fed rate hike in October (BLS, CNBC).
Eurozone inflation climbs to a three-year high. Prices rose 3.8% in the year to September, up from 3.2% in August, according to Eurostat’s flash estimate. Energy did most of the damage, while services inflation edged up to 3.2%. The jump adds pressure on the European Central Bank, whose next steps markets are now watching closely (Eurostat).
⚡ Energy & bills
G7 agrees to release 100 million barrels from emergency stocks. The coordinated release, run through the International Energy Agency over four months, puts diesel first, with a large front-loaded delivery in the first 20 days. It follows US pressure on Europe as diesel prices hover near records, with the US average at about $6.37 a gallon. For households, it may take weeks before any relief shows up at the pump (Al Jazeera, Washington Post).
🏢 Companies
Nike’s sales slide again and job cuts are coming. Revenue fell 4% to $11.2 billion in its fiscal first quarter, hit by weakness in Greater China and Europe. The company now expects full-year sales to drop by a high-single-digit percentage and launched a cost programme called “Pace” targeting $2.5 billion in savings. The shares fell sharply on Friday (Nike, Yahoo Finance).
Tesla beats delivery forecasts. The carmaker delivered 486,532 vehicles in the third quarter, about 2% fewer than a year earlier but comfortably above analysts’ estimates. Its shares jumped about 5%, while rival Rivian also topped expectations with 19,248 deliveries (Tesla, Electrek).
🔢 One number to know
18.8%
The annual rise in eurozone energy prices in September, up from 14.3% in August, and the main reason headline inflation jumped to 3.8% (Eurostat).
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🗓 What to watch today
| Time (CET) | Event | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Today (Sat) | Markets closed for the weekend | Time to digest the weak US jobs data |
| Mon 5 Oct, 16:00 | US ISM services PMI (September) | First big check on services after the hiring slowdown |
| Tue 6 Oct, 11:00 | Eurozone retail sales (August) | Shows whether shoppers are coping with higher prices |
| Wed 7 Oct, 20:00 | Fed minutes (15–16 September meeting) | Clues on how close the Fed is to raising rates |
| Thu 8 Oct, 13:30 | ECB meeting accounts | The ECB’s thinking as inflation climbs |
Full week in our economic calendar.
📚 Read more
- World Economy in 24 Hours: October 3 — G7 taps oil reserves; stocks rebound
- Stocks rise as weak jobs report cools Fed rate-hike bets
- Pennsylvania approves UGI gas rate hike: +$6.45 a month
- Tool: see what rising prices do to your money with our inflation calculator.
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Market data is for information only and is not investment advice.
Written by The Daily Economy editorial team with AI assistance and checked against the linked sources. Read our editorial policy.