Stock Futures Look to Start September on a Low Note

Stock futures are firmly lower after a sluggish finish to August, though the major indexes still managed to log monthly gains. Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) and Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) futures are both down more than 300 points, while S&P 500 Index (SPX) futures also sit comfortably in the red. Inflation concerns and rising oil prices are pushing bond yields higher, with the 10-year Treasury yield hitting its highest level since January 2025. Tech stocks are dragging in response. September's historically bearish seasonality isn't helping investor sentiment either, as Wall Street kicks off a notoriously difficult month for stocks.

Continue reading for more on today's market, including:

• Senior V.P. of Research Todd Salamone on the market's post-Jackson Hole movement.
• Now looks like a good time to "buy the dip" on Micron stock. 
• Plus, DUOL pops on upgrade; NVS rises on trial data; and NVDA slides.

5 Things You Need to Know Today

1. The Cboe Option Exchange saw roughly 2.1 million call contracts and 1.5 million put contracts traded on Monday. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.70, while the 21-day moving average remained at 0.59. 
2. Duolingo Inc (NASDAQ:DUOL) is up 6.9% premarket, after an upgrade from Evercore ISI to "outperform" from "in line," with a price-target hike to $210. The firm cited strong survey data, while D.A. Davidson raised its price target to $175 from $160 on strong user growth, less than a month after hiking it to $160. Though the stock has been rebounding since early April, it's still coming into today with a 15.5% year-to-date deficit. 
3. Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) is up 5.3% before the bell, after positive trial data for the company’s multiple sclerosis drug. It looks like the $160 level will continue to keep a lid on today's gains, however. Year to date, the equity is up 10.3%. 
4. Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA) is off 1.5% in electronic trading, as chip stocks pull back amid rising Treasury yields. Notably, Anthropic just signed a cloud-computing deal with Nvidia worth $35 billion. Since the start of 2026, NVDA is up 18.4%. 
5. The earnings slate is piled high this week.

Global Bond Yields Rise As Well

Asian markets finished mostly lower today, as geopolitical tensions heightened and global bond yields continued to climb. Japan's 10-year yield pushed above 3% to its highest level since August 1996, while U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called on the Bank of Japan (BoJ) for assistance with the plummeting yen. Japan's Nikkei and China's Shanghai Composite both fell 0.2%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng shed 0.9%, while South Korea's Kospi bucked the trend with a 0.2% gain.

European stocks are also sliding today, after euro zone inflation rose above 3% in August, bolstering expectations for another interest rate hike from the European Central Bank (ECB). Germany's benchmark bond yield climbed to its highest level since 2011, as persistently high oil prices fueled inflation concerns. Elsewhere, Germany reported worse-than-expected July retail sales, falling 3.4% compared to the 0.4% rise expected, while France's August Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) climbed to 51.1, showing expansion. At last look, London's FTSE 100 is down 0.6%, France's CAC 40 has lost 0.2%, and Germany's DAX is leading the losers with a 0.9% deficit.