Daily Rundown

October 2, 2026

Chart of the Day

Number of the Day

43,281

Total layoff announcements last month, down 19.9 percent year-over-year and the fewest in a September since 2022

Quote of the Day

“Orders have doubled yet again -and delivery times have also doubled- in the semiconductor, electronics, and government sectors, with remaining sectors flat to down.”

Respondent to the September ISM manufacturing survey

Thursday’s Highlights

Initial unemployment claims (week of 9/20) ticked lower by 1,000 to 197,000.

The ISM manufacturing index (September) edged lower to 54.5. The prices paid index hit 77.9.

Construction spending (August) rose by a solid 0.9 percent, as data center outlays 7.5 percent.

Quick Commentary

Construction’s drag on the broader economy is easing due in large part to robust data center spending, which is now up by 73.2 percent year-over-year. Manufacturing was similarly a headwind prior to this year, but is now a source of strength thanks also to the outsized impact of AI-related investments. Higher long-term interest rates are likely already affecting these trends at the margin, although with substantial commitments already in place for 2027 and even 2028, the biggest impacts will come with a lag (note that the capex boom of the late 1990s didn’t come to an end until the Fed lifted benchmark rates by 175 basis points and the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield had risen to more than 6.75 percent). For now, the tech economy remains the key support for the overall expansion, with enough of a knock-on effect on prices to keep the Fed in play for the foreseeable future.

Today’s Highlights

Employment

Factory orders

Daily Trivia

What long-defunct automobile brand saw a revival in collector interest when it was referenced in the theme song of the most-watched television series of the 1970s?

(Thursday’s Question: What S&P 500 company is named for both a city in which it no longer does business and a property that no longer exists? Answer: Las Vegas Sands)