The Nasdaq 100 is a rates bet in disguise
published 13:17 · updated never, that’s the point
NAS100 — prices, shape and the desk →
SOFR 3.87% · 22 Sept 2026 · NY Fed
Long-dated growth stocks discount profits that arrive years out, which makes the index a rates trade wearing a tech costume.
The Nasdaq 100 is exposed to duration risk because it leans on companies whose profits are priced years into the future, so when interest rates rise the value of those distant earnings shrinks in today’s terms, moving the index for reasons that have nothing to do with how the underlying businesses are actually performing.