Key points as of 05:50 GMT
- Asia. Asian markets fell sharply after Wall Street’s rout. Japan’s Nikkei 225 is down about 6.3% at 57,229, and South Korea’s Kospi is down more than 5%, according to Globes.
- US futures. Markets are fairly stable so far. S&P 500 futures are almost unchanged (+0.08%), Nasdaq 100 futures are up 1% and Dow futures are down 0.9%.
- Fear gauge. The VIX jumped about 70% on Thursday to 28.18, its biggest one-day rise since April 2025. A VIX above 20 usually means investors expect big swings.
- Oil, gold and rates. WTI crude is at $91.40, gold is at $4,051.90 and the 10-year Treasury yield is 4.84%.
- Bitcoin. Bitcoin is at about $75,609, down 5.9% over 24 hours.
- Today. European markets open at 08:00 GMT, and the US jobs report is due at 13:30 GMT.
Markets at a glance Market sentimentNeutral ▬
| Market | Level | Change |
|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 futures | 7,389.00 | +0.08% |
| Nasdaq 100 futures | 27,020.00 | +1.00% |
| Dow futures | 51,161 | -0.88% |
| VIX (Thursday close) | 28.18 | +69.66% |
| Nikkei 225 (Japan) | 57,229 | -6.30% |
| DAX (Thursday close) | 26,325 | -0.43% |
| WTI crude futures | $91.40 | +0.97% |
| Gold futures | $4,051.90 | -1.50% |
| 10-year Treasury yield (Thursday close) | 4.84% | -5 bp |
| Bitcoin (24h change) | $75,609 | -5.93% |
Snapshot as of 05:50 GMT from our Markets Today feed. Changes are against Thursday’s close. Bitcoin is the 24-hour change and the 10-year yield change is in basis points (1 bp = 0.01 percentage point). The VIX, DAX and Treasury yield are Thursday closes because those markets have not opened yet. Sentiment follows S&P 500 futures: above +0.3% is Risk-On, below -0.3% is Risk-Off, in between is Neutral.
Asia falls, US futures steady
Asian markets are following Thursday’s Wall Street selloff lower. Besides the Nikkei and the Kospi, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng is down about 1.2% and Australia’s market about 0.9%, according to Globes. The Nikkei is deep enough in the red that Globes describes it as in a bear market, which means more than 20% below its recent peak.
US futures tell a calmer story. Futures are contracts that trade before the stock market opens, so they show where traders expect Wall Street to start. S&P 500 futures are almost flat, Nasdaq 100 futures are up about 1% as traders look for a bounce in tech, and Dow futures are down about 0.9%. In other words, there is no panic buying or further selling for now, and the market is waiting for the jobs report.
What happened on Wall Street
Thursday was the worst day for US stocks since April 2025. The S&P 500 fell 4.36% to 7,353.73, the Dow lost 3.44% and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 5.52%, which put it in a correction, meaning more than 10% below its record. All 11 sectors in the S&P 500 fell, and technology was the worst at about 8%.
The trigger was chip and data-centre stocks, which sold off on fears that the AI building boom will slow after the Democratic wins in the midterm elections. Nvidia fell about 9%, and AMD and Micron each fell about 17%, according to CappNotes and Globes.
The VIX jumps 70%
The VIX, often called the market’s fear gauge, jumped 69.66% on Thursday to 28.18, its biggest one-day rise since April 2025, according to CappNotes. It measures how much movement traders expect in the S&P 500 over the next 30 days. A reading around 15 is calm, and 28 means investors are paying up for protection against more big swings.
Oil and gold
WTI crude is at $91.40, up about 1% from Thursday’s close of $90.52. It rose 2.7% on Thursday, recovering part of Wednesday’s roughly 8% drop on renewed worries about supply because of the war with Iran.
Gold is at $4,051.90, down about 1.5%, giving back some of its small Thursday gain.
Bitcoin
Bitcoin is down about 6% over 24 hours to roughly $75,600, and Ether is down about 8%. Crypto has moved with tech stocks this week, so the AI selloff is hitting it too.
Treasury yields
The 10-year Treasury yield closed Thursday at 4.84%, down 5 basis points and near a two-month low. Yields usually fall when investors sell stocks and buy government bonds for safety. Even so, the CME FedWatch tool still shows roughly a two-in-three chance of a Fed rate hike on 9 December, which is why today’s jobs data matters.
What to watch
- European markets open at 08:00 GMT, and may catch up with Thursday’s Wall Street drop and Asia’s fall
- The US jobs report at 13:30 GMT: economists expect roughly 60,000 new jobs and unemployment of 4.2%, according to CappNotes and Globes
- Whether chip stocks stabilise after losing up to 17% on Thursday
- Earnings before the US open from Humana and Charter
Economic calendar
This market snapshot was prepared at 05:50 GMT on November 6, 2026 from live market data and Thursday’s closing reports, and it will not update after publication. For more context see our Daily Market Brief. It is for information only and is not investment advice.