The performance review of last month's hiring shows need for improvement... October 03, 2026 Presented By Hi there. The runners in this morning’s 50K ultramarathon in Denver won’t just need stamina; they’ll need strong stomachs. That’s because competitors must stop at 10 Taco Bell locations along the race course, and eat a menu item at nine of them. Something tells us that No. 2 will be the most popular stop. —Dave Lozo, Sam Klebanov, Brendan Cosgrove, Matty Merritt, Holly Van Leuven, Abby Rubenstein In today’s newsletter, we’ll get into: The job market flagging last month An emergency release of diesel and crude Plastic-free coffee pods Markets Nasdaq 27,190.86 +1.19% S&P 7,722.72 +0.73% Dow 51,176.96 +0.49% 10-Year 5.277% +4.0 bps Bitcoin $84,491.01 -0.03% Tesla $370.59 +4.65% Data is provided by *Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 2:30pm ET. Here's what these numbers mean. Markets: Balance in all things: Bad news about the labor market was good news for the stock market. Stocks surged yesterday, with Nvidia’s rise pushing the Nasdaq to a new intraday record, following the release of a weak jobs report (more on that below). Falling bond yields and oil prices also helped. Stock spotlight: Tesla accelerated after revealing more Q3 deliveries than expected, even if it was still 2% less compared to a year ago. Work to be done America posts a surprise job market slowdown Illustration: Morning Brew Inc., Joe Raedle/Getty Images Relatively few Americans had to come up with a fun fact to share with their new coworkers last month. The US added an underwhelming 29,000 jobs in September, the government said yesterday—below the 84,000 that economists surveyed by Dow Jones expected. Government data released yesterday shows that last month: Even healthcare, typically the all-star job-creating industry, disappointed, gaining just 17,000 workers, compared with the 33,000 jobs it added in an average month over the past year. Construction and manufacturing added a modest 11,000 and 9,000 jobs, respectively. AI-exposed industries like business services and the information sector shed jobs. The summer’s strong job creation may have been a mirage: Government statisticians revised down July and August jobs numbers by a combined 60,000. The job market is still chugging along Though the unemployment rate notched up from 4.1% to 4.2% last month, that’s still low by historical standards. That uptick is largely due to the labor pool growing (the unemployment gauge only includes people working or looking for a job). Economists say fewer new jobs have been needed lately to keep employment stable since the labor pool is stagnating amid President Trump’s immigration crackdown and baby boomers retiring. But… pay isn’t keeping up with inflation. Yearly wage growth slowed to 3% last month, the lowest rate since the pandemic. What does this tell the Fed? It might strengthen the case not to hike rates. Wall Street is betting the anemic hiring numbers will compel Warsh and co. to prioritize employment stability over inflation this month. The trading odds of another rate hike in October dropped to 20% yesterday, from 24% the day before, per FedWatch. Last month, the Fed hiked interest rates for the first time in three years, citing the need to fight inflation amid a strong labor market. Looking ahead… this is the last monthly jobs report before the midterm elections in November, in which economic woes are expected to be a major issue. —SK Sponsored By TerraCycle Recycling 400+ waste streams others won’t TerraCycle partners with hundreds of major brands like Coca-Cola, Gillette, Whole Foods, and Taco Bell to recycle razors, sauce packets, coffee pods, and much more. They’re not only helping the planet—they’re making a profit. Their business model saw 93% revenue growth between 2020 and 2025 , hitting $22m in gross profit last year. They have made four major acquisitions, with more planned. And they’re dominating the search engines for recycling solutions. Go ahead and look up how to recycle any hard-to-recycle trash, like “recycle cigarette butts” or “recycle contact lenses,” and see who shows up. Early backers have seen roughly 22%–24% of their investment capital back in dividends. Invest by Oct. 8 to be eligible for the next potential dividend payment . World Tour de headlines Brandon Bell/Getty Images 🛢️ The G7 have agreed to release diesel and crude to bring prices down. With the Iran war sending energy costs soaring, the Group of Seven nations and allies plan to release 100 million barrels of oil and diesel from their emergency stocks over the next four months. The decision comes after President Trump publicly mulled banning US diesel exports to curb price increases. This seems to end that threat, with the G7 statement made by French President Emmanuel Macron saying the countries agreed to “take no measures to restrict the exchange of energy and petroleum products between partner countries.” 🎬 Skydance is ready for its close-up. Because Paramount Skydance Warner Bros. Discovery is really too much of a mouthful, CEO David Ellison announced yesterday that the soon-to-be media giant resulting from Paramount’s purchase of WBD will be called Skydance. Skydance was the name of Ellison’s original media company, and the exec said on X that he picked it as a name that wouldn’t overshadow either storied studio. Paramount and Warner Bros. will retain their names as sub-brands. The mega media merger is expected to close on Tuesday after a judge recently signed off on a deal resolving an antitrust lawsuit brought by a group of states over the $111 billion deal. Once the merger happens, the company will change its stock ticker to SKYD and move from the Nasdaq to the New York Stock Exchange. 🪧 French students are protesting. They may not be storming the Bastille just yet, but there’s a revolution brewing among high school students in France who are protesting classroom overcrowding, outdated facilities, and a la