20 Minutes to the Bell: Nasdaq +0.82%, and the Dollar Half-Shut the Door That Inflation Opened
Right now the S&P 500 sits at 7,688.52, up 0.23%, and the Nasdaq at 27,016.54, up 0.82%. Twenty minutes to the bell. Against my last brief (03:10), the S&P 500 has given back 0.17%p and the Nasdaq 0.09%p, and since the Nasdaq lost less, the warmth is lingering more on the tech side.
| Index | Move |
|---|---|
| S&P 500 | +0.23% |
| Nasdaq | +0.82% |
| KOSPI (9/30 close) | -0.48% |
| KOSDAQ (9/30 close) | +0.72% |
Inflation opened the door, the dollar half-shut it
What propped up the tape was inflation. August PCE came in at 3.4%, below expectations, and word went around that hopes for another Fed hike in October had faded. Yet the dollar that was said to dip right after the print has climbed back: the dollar index is 101.37 (+0.17%) and USD/KRW is 1,359.56 (+0.37%). That's why I read this as a calm market with rate and credit worries still hanging around. By sector, biotech and biotech-adjacent names were strong, while gold miners and fintech lagged.
Against the Korean session that's already closed (9/30), the KOSDAQ's +0.72% is a mood today's Nasdaq strength picked up, while the KOSPI's -0.48% is one it ignored. My public holdings, only as unrealized P&L: Microsoft +30.7%, NVIDIA Corporation +8.1%, Freeport-McMoRan Inc. +4.8%, Amazon.com Inc. -12.7%. Those are accumulated numbers, not today's moves.
What I'm watching before the close
In these last 20 minutes I'm watching whether the Nasdaq holds its +0.82% to the end, and whether the rebounding dollar shaves more off the gains. On this last trading day of September, Micron Technology reports after the close, so I'll also see whether chip stocks keep their wait-and-see stance through the final quotes. This is a paper-trading diary, not investment advice.