Wall Street Rebounds Friday as Nasdaq 100 Jumps 2% After Worst Day Since 2020

Wall Street bounced back on Friday as the Nasdaq 100 jumped 2% in its best session since September, ending a brutal sell-off that wiped trillions of dollars from American stocks. The Nasdaq 100 rebound came a day after the index suffered its worst fall since 2020, with chipmakers leading the recovery and a stronger-than-expected October jobs report giving investors a reason to buy the dip.

Key Points

• The Nasdaq 100 rose 1.99% to 27,159.56, its best session since September 21. The Nasdaq Composite gained 1.71% to 24,730.30 and the S&P 500 added 0.91% to 7,420.84.
• The Dow edged up 0.11% to 51,579.96 and the Russell 2000 gained 0.89% to 2,754.27 as the recovery spread beyond technology stocks.
• Nvidia rose 3.9%, adding about $170 billion in market value a day after losing roughly $447 billion. Tesla climbed 4.8% after Elon Musk said Cybertruck production will wind down for the self-driving Cybercab.
• The US added 165,000 jobs in October, well above the 65,000 economists expected. Unemployment fell to 4.1% from 4.2%, and August and September payrolls were revised up by a combined 84,000.
• The VIX fell 16% to 23.67 after Thursday’s nearly 70% spike. The 2-year Treasury yield rose to 4.51%, the 10-year to 4.85%, and gold fell 1% to $4,072 an ounce.

What Happened

Stocks opened higher on Friday and held their gains through the close, with technology shares doing most of the heavy lifting. Chipmakers, the hardest hit in Thursday’s rout, led the rebound as investors decided the sell-off had gone too far and bought back the names they had dumped a day earlier.

The October jobs report, released before the opening bell, set the tone. Employers added 165,000 jobs, more than two and a half times the 65,000 economists had forecast, and the unemployment rate slipped to 4.1% from 4.2%. Average hourly earnings rose 0.4% on the month and 3.1% over the year.

Background: Thursday’s Historic Rout

Friday’s rally only makes sense against the scale of what happened the day before. On Thursday, the Nasdaq plunged 5.52% into correction territory, its worst single day since 2020, while the S&P 500 dropped 4.36% and the Dow shed 1,833 points. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index fell for a third straight session, down 12% over three sessions.

Two fears collided at once: doubts about how quickly the hundreds of billions of dollars pouring into artificial intelligence will pay off, and worry that the Democrats’ sweeping midterm victory will bring tougher scrutiny of data centres and Big Tech. About $2.5 trillion was wiped off the US stock market on Thursday alone, and the rout spread across Asia on Friday, with Japan’s Nikkei plunging 6% in its third-biggest drop ever.

Nasdaq 100 Rebound: Chips Lead the Recovery

The Nasdaq 100 rebound was led by the very stocks that had been punished hardest. Nvidia, the world’s most valuable company and the symbol of the AI boom, rose 3.9% to lead the Dow, adding about $170 billion in market value just a day after losing roughly $447 billion. The swing, worth more than $600 billion in two sessions, captures how violently sentiment has turned.

Tesla climbed 4.8% after chief executive Elon Musk said Cybertruck production will wind down as the company shifts focus to the self-driving Cybercab. The recovery was broad, too: the Russell 2000’s 0.89% gain showed smaller companies joining the rally, while the VIX fell 16% to 23.67, gold slipped 1% to $4,072 an ounce, oil eased to $90.18 for West Texas Intermediate and $97.44 for Brent, and Bitcoin was little changed at $75,912.

Reactions: Relief, But Rate Fears Linger

The mood on trading floors on Friday was relief rather than celebration. The jobs report gave buyers a concrete reason to step in, and the scale of Thursday’s losses had left many stocks looking cheap to investors who still believe in the AI story. Consumer sentiment also improved, with the University of Michigan’s preliminary index rising to 51 in November from 48 in October.

But the same strong jobs data also fed a new worry. Bond yields jumped, with the 2-year Treasury yield climbing to 4.51% and the 10-year to 4.85%, as traders raised the odds of another Federal Reserve rate rise in December. No verbatim quotes from analysts or officials were carried in the reporting on Friday’s session, so the reaction is best read in the market moves themselves: stocks up, fear down, yields up.

Why It Matters

Friday’s rebound matters because it tests whether Thursday’s rout was a correction or the start of something worse. The Nasdaq 100 had fallen 10% from its record highs, and a 5.52% fall in a single session raised fears that the AI trade that carried the market for two years was unwinding. A bounce led by Nvidia suggests investors are not ready to abandon the story yet.

It also matters for the Federal Reserve. October payrolls more than doubled forecasts and prior months were revised higher, a strength that argues against rate cuts and has revived talk of a December rise. For ordinary investors, the week’s whiplash is a reminder that retirement accounts ride on the same indexes that swung trillions of dollars in two days.

What Happens Next

The next test comes on Tuesday, November 10, when the October consumer price index is released. If inflation comes in hotter than expected, the case for a December rate rise strengthens and Friday’s rally could fade quickly. If it cools, the Fed may stay on hold and the rebound could build. Investors will also watch whether the chip rally holds, with Nvidia and its peers needing to show that the AI spending boom is producing real revenue, not just promises.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much did the Nasdaq 100 rise on Friday?
It rose 1.99% to 27,159.56 on Friday, November 6, 2026, its best session since September 21. The Nasdaq Composite gained 1.71% and the S&P 500 added 0.91%.

What caused Thursday’s sell-off?
The Nasdaq fell 5.52%, its worst day since 2020, on doubts about how quickly heavy AI spending will pay off and fears of tougher scrutiny of data centres after the Democrats’ midterm sweep.

How strong was the October jobs report?
The US added 165,000 jobs, well above the 65,000 expected. Unemployment fell to 4.1% from 4.2%, wages rose 0.4% on the month, and August and September payrolls were revised up by 84,000 combined.

Why did Nvidia rise on Friday?
Nvidia gained 3.9%, adding about $170 billion in market value, as investors bought back chip stocks after Thursday’s rout, when the company had lost roughly $447 billion in one session.

Is the market still down for the week?
Yes. Despite Friday’s bounce, the S&P 500 remained down nearly 3% for the week and the Nasdaq about 5%, after Thursday’s historic sell-off.

Read more: Nasdaq Closes Down 5.5% in Worst Day Since April as $2 Trillion Wiped Out • October Jobs Report: US Adds 165,000 Jobs, Beating Forecasts as Unemployment Falls • Wall Street Rally: Dow Jumps 1,203 Points as Democrats Take Over Congress