Why is the Nasdaq 100 down today?

Nasdaq 100 (US100) is down 523 points, or 1.75%, from the previous close at 29826.2 in the London session. Seeking Alpha, Invezz and WSJ are still on technology, the AI theme and overnight equities after a prior session described as higher, and no clear catalyst for this drop is visible in the newsflow.

How much has US100 moved versus a typical day?

The drop equals one times the 14-day ATR of 508.5 points. The day range is already 515.2 points, which is 101 percent of that ATR.

What time are US initial jobless claims today?

US initial jobless claims are scheduled today at 12:30 UTC. The previous reading is 199, the estimate is 200, and no actual has been released.

What could reverse the Nasdaq 100 selloff?

A break above R1 at 29988.1 would open the way to R2 at 30150.1, and a move back below the daily pivot at 29764 would invalidate that path. From 29303.2 the nearest resistance is S2 at 29377.9, 74.7 points away, and the nearest support is S3 at 29215.9.

Nasdaq 100 Price Move Today Stays Neutral in London

Market mover Neutral bias Oct 22, 2026, 08:03 UTC

Oliver HayesMarket Risk Analyst · ForexR analyst

US100 at 29303.2 is down 523 points, or 1.75%, and one daily ATR, between S2 at 29377.9 and S3 at 29215.9. Mixed daily trend against down H4 and H1 keeps the bias neutral.

Soft red and green lights against a dark background

Price29,303.2

Day change-1.75%

Day range29,281.2 - 29,796.4

ATR (14)508.5

Resistance	Level	Support	Level
R3	30,374.2	S1	29,602.0
R2	30,150.1	S2	29,377.9
R1	29,988.1	S3	29,215.9
Previous day high	29,925.9	Previous day low	29,539.8
20-day high	31,365.0	20-day low	29,069.7
Daily pivot 29,764.0. Data as of 2026-10-22 07:54 UTC; price from a live feed, levels computed from the previous completed daily bar.

Nasdaq 100 (US100) 1-hour chart with the daily pivot at 29,764.0, R1 29,988.1, R2 30,150.1, S1 29,602.0, S2 29,377.9 and the bullish and bearish scenario paths — Nasdaq 100 (US100), 1-hour candles with the daily pivot levels, the range between nearest support and resistance, and both scenario paths. Data as of 2026-10-22 07:54 UTC.

How far today's Nasdaq 100 drop has gone

At 07:54 UTC London is the live session, and New York joins at 12:00 UTC. Nasdaq 100 (US100) last trades at 29303.2, between S3 at 29215.9 and S2 at 29377.9. The daily trend state is mixed, the H4 trend is down and the H1 trend is down, so the bias is neutral. Nearest resistance is S2 at 29377.9, 74.7 points above the last price, and nearest support is S3 at 29215.9, 87.3 points below it.

The index is down 523 points, or 1.75%, from the previous close at 29826.2. The drop equals one times the 14-day ATR of 508.5 points, and the day range of 515.2 points is already 101 percent of that ATR, as framed in the ATR and volatility guide. The day open and the day high are both 29796.4, against a day low at 29281.2. Yesterday's range was 386.1 points, with the high at 29925.9 and the low at 29539.8.

Levels around this London print

Price already sits under the daily pivot at 29764, under S1 at 29602 and under S2 at 29377.9, with S3 at 29215.9 still underneath as support. The overhead pivot resistances are R1 at 29988.1, R2 at 30150.1 and R3 at 30374.2, as covered in how pivot points work.

The five-day high is 30020.6 and the five-day low is 29069.7. The twenty-day high is 31365 and the twenty-day low is 29069.7. The round number above is 30000 and the round number below is 29000.

The daily trend state is mixed, with price under the 20-day EMA at 30112.4 and the 50-day EMA at 29902.1, above the 200-day EMA at 28003.7, and with daily RSI at 45.9. H4 is down, with the 20-period EMA at 29621.3 and the 50-period EMA at 29878.6. H1 is down, with the 20-period EMA at 29555.1 and the 50-period EMA at 29604.3.

Newsflow, claims and tomorrow's PMIs

Seeking Alpha and Invezz are still on technology shares and the AI theme after describing a prior Nasdaq session as higher, and WSJ has an overnight equity item. No clear catalyst for this London drop is visible in that newsflow.

At the October 21 close the 2-year yield was 4.81%, up 2 basis points, and the 10-year yield was 5.13%, up 1 basis point, while the 3-month yield was 4.25% and the 2s10s spread was 32 basis points versus October 20. They are context, not a proven cause.

As of the week to October 13, speculators were net long Nasdaq 100 (US100), 70.5 percent long and 29.5 percent short, with net contracts at 48523 after 58123. Speculators reduced net long Nasdaq 100 (US100) by 9600 contracts, which is positioning and not a forecast.

News volume is 157 percent of the 90-day average, and the opportunity read is -17, a bearish reading. An alert shows that opportunity read moving from -30, bearish, to -7, neutral, in 24 hours.

Initial jobless claims come today at 12:30 UTC, medium impact, previous 199 and estimate 200, with no actual yet. Tomorrow at 13:45 UTC the S&P Global Services PMI is high impact, previous 58.8 and estimate 57.9, and the S&P Global Manufacturing PMI is high impact, previous 55.9 and estimate 55.6. The S&P Global Composite PMI is also tomorrow at 13:45 UTC, medium impact, previous 58.4, with no estimate, as listed in the economic calendar guide.

Paths above R1 and below S3

A break above R1 at 29988.1 would open the way to R2 at 30150.1, and the span from trigger to target is 162 points. A move back below the daily pivot at 29764 would invalidate that upside path.

If S3 at 29215.9 breaks, the way opens to the round number at 29000, and the span from that trigger to that target is 215.9 points. That downside path fails if price gets back above the daily pivot at 29764. The day low at 29281.2 remains above S3, and the five-day low at 29069.7 lies between S3 and 29000.

Bias stays neutral on the mixed daily state against down H4 and H1 trends, with price between S2 and S3 after one daily ATR. Claims are still ahead today at 12:30 UTC, and the high-impact PMI releases are tomorrow.