Monday looks like a quiet day on the calendar, but Wall Street is not taking it off. If you woke up wondering whether you can place a trade, the short answer is yes. Below is a plain-English look at the stock market today, the headlines behind it, whether a stock market crash is a real worry, and why IREN stock has been so bumpy lately.
Is the Stock Market Open on Columbus Day?
Yes. Oct. 12 is both Columbus Day and Indigenous Peoples’ Day, and U.S. stock markets will run a regular business day, though the bond market will be closed. Regular trading hours stay the same, 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern.
The closed bond market matters more than it sounds. Treasury yields are one of the biggest forces on stocks right now, and with that market dark, traders get fewer fresh signals about interest rates. Don’t be shocked if the session feels a little thin or choppy. The next scheduled stock market closure is Thursday, Nov. 26, for Thanksgiving.
Stock Market Today: Where Things Stand
Before the opening bell, the mood was mildly positive. Sunday-evening futures pointed higher, with S&P 500 futures up about 0.3% and Dow futures up about 0.4%. Futures are only a hint, and they can flip fast. There is also no major earnings report or economic data scheduled for today, so the stock market today may drift until the week’s bigger events show up.
To see how we got here, look at Friday. The S&P 500 rose 0.6% to 7,811.54, the Dow gained 0.8% to 51,654.95, and the Nasdaq added 0.6% to 27,366.17. The S&P 500 came close to topping its all-time high from three days earlier.
For the full week, the S&P 500 gained 1.2%, the Dow 0.9%, and the Nasdaq 0.6%, while the small-company Russell 2000 slipped 0.9%. Year to date, the S&P 500 is up 14.1%, the Dow 7.5%, and the Nasdaq 17.7%.
Notice the split. Big names did the heavy lifting, and smaller companies lagged. Keep that in mind when we get to crash talk.
Stock Market News Driving the Week
A few stories are pushing prices around. Here’s the plain version of each.
Treasury yields are high. The 10-year yield hit a 24-year high of nearly 5.37% midweek before easing below 5.25%. It finished Friday around 5.24%. Higher yields make borrowing costlier for companies and for you. They also make safe bonds more tempting compared to stocks.
Oil is jumpy. Early last week, oil climbed and the Nasdaq slipped after a fresh tanker attack, and Brent crude crossed $104. Things have calmed since then, and U.S. crude was near $90 this morning. Still, any new flare-up overseas can send fuel prices, and inflation worries, right back up.
AI worries came and went. On Thursday, the Nasdaq fell 1.25% and tech dropped about 2% as investors fretted over AI revenue. Friday’s bounce shows how quickly that mood can change.
The Fed is still in the picture. Many traders expect another Federal Reserve rate hike in December. That keeps every inflation report under a microscope.
Earnings season starts now. This week brings big bank earnings, the September CPI report, and retail sales. Analysts expect S&P 500 earnings to jump more than 30% from a year ago, largely thanks to AI-related companies. That’s a high bar. A miss could sting. googleaol
Is a Stock Market Crash Coming?
No, not right now. Indexes are sitting near record highs, and the VIX fear gauge was around 15 late last week, which is pretty calm. But the question keeps popping up for good reasons, so let’s talk about it honestly.
A stock market crash is a sudden, steep drop, usually double-digit losses within days or weeks. A “correction” is a 10% slide from a peak. A “bear market” is 20% or more. Most pullbacks never turn into a true crash.
Here’s what worries careful investors:
- Yields above 5% put pressure on stock prices, especially for expensive growth names.
- Oil shocks can reignite inflation and push the Fed to stay tough.
- A lot of the gains come from a small group of AI-linked giants. When the Russell 2000 falls while the S&P 500 rises, that’s a sign the rally isn’t broad.
- Earnings expectations are very high.
None of this means a stock market crash is on the way. It means the market has less room for bad surprises. Nobody can time a crash. What you can control is simple: keep your emergency cash out of stocks, spread your money around, and don’t make big moves based on one scary headline.
IREN Stock: What’s Going On
IREN stock is a good example of how quickly sentiment can turn. The shares closed at $35.19 on Friday, down 1.46%. That’s well below the September high near $49.60 and far under this year’s peak of about $70.60.
The business itself has grown fast. IREN used to be known for Bitcoin mining. Today it sells AI computing power. In May, it signed a strategic partnership with NVIDIA aimed at up to 5GW of AI infrastructure, and gave NVIDIA the right to invest up to $2.1 billion in shares. In July, it raised its year-end AI Cloud revenue target to more than $4 billion, with about 85% backed by signed contracts. Its customer list includes Microsoft and NVIDIA.
So why is IREN stock falling? There are three main reasons.
- Investors are wary of “neocloud” companies. The stock has stayed under pressure this month as investors remain cautious about the group.
- Reliability questions. Recent coverage raised concerns about operations at older British Columbia sites.
- The money question. Big contracts are great, but investors want proof the growth can produce lasting cash flow after financing, depreciation, spending, and share dilution. The latest quarter showed revenue of $137.2 million and a loss of $684 million.
The bull case is strong demand and big partners. The bear case is high spending, a pricey valuation, and execution risk. Reasonable people land on both sides, so do your own homework. This is information, not a recommendation to buy or sell.
What to Watch This Week
- Bank earnings: Strong results would back the “healthy economy” story.
- September CPI: A hot number could push yields up again.
- Treasury yields: Watch whether they stay near 5.2%.
- Oil prices: Another spike would stir inflation fears.
- Tech and AI names: These led the market up, and they can lead it down.
FAQ
Is the stock market open on Columbus Day 2026?
Yes. The NYSE and Nasdaq are open on Monday, Oct. 12. Only the bond market is closed.
What time does the stock market close today?
Regular trading ends at 4:00 p.m. Eastern.
Is the stock market going to crash?
There’s no sign of a crash right now, since indexes are near record highs. Risks like high yields and oil swings are real, though, and nobody can predict a crash.
Why is IREN stock down?
Mostly because investors are nervous about AI cloud companies, because of operational questions, and because of worries about spending and dilution.
The Bottom Line
The US stock market starts this week near record highs, but with some strain underneath: high yields, jumpy oil, uneven participation, and big earnings hopes. For everyday investors, calm beats clever. Keep your plan, stay diversified, and treat every dramatic stock market news alert with some skepticism.
This article is for general information only and is not financial advice. Markets move fast, so check live prices before you make any decisions.
