U.S. stocks fell sharply at the start of trade Tuesday, on track for a second day of heavy losses, after President Donald Trump said the idea of holding off on a U.S.-China trade deal until after the 2020 presidential election had appeal, undermining market confidence that a deal may be done before fresh import tariffs are imposed on December 15. <\/p>\n
Investors were also monitoring moves by President Trump to raise or threaten tariffs on other partners, including Brazil, Argentina and France.<\/p>\n
What are major indexes doing?<\/h6>\n
The Dow Jones Industrial Average
Stocks saw their biggest one-day decline in nearly eight weeks on Monday, with the Dow falling<\/a> 268.37 points, or 1%, to end at 27,783.04. The S&P 500 dropped 27.11 points or 0.9%, to close at 3,113.87, while the Nasdaq Composite\u00a0finished at 8,567.99, with a loss of 97.48 points or 1.1%.<\/p>\n Stocks fell after Trump, speaking at a London news conference where he is attending a NATO meeting, said he had \u201cno deadline\u201d when it comes to concluding the long-running U.S.-China trade talks.<\/p>\n \u201cIn some ways, I think it\u2019s better to wait until after the election if you want to know the truth. But I\u2019m not going to say that, I just think that,\u201d Trump said.<\/p>\n While Trump has made similar comments in the past, analysts said stocks remain highly sensitive to headlines and comments on the trade talks, with optimism over the prospect for a so-called phase one deal running high since early October.<\/p>\n In apparent response to the president\u2019s comments, a Chinese news outlet associated with the ruling Communist Party, the Global Times, tweeted that China\u2019s government is prepared for \u201ceven the worst-case scenario.\u201d <\/p>\n The US appears to be backpedaling in #tradetalks<\/a> as officials threaten tariff hikes, but that will have zero effect on China’s stance because Chinese officials have long prepared for even the worst scenario: Mei Xinyu, an expert close the Chinese Commerce Ministry pic.twitter.com\/P7Ai3NYXdO<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Global Times (@globaltimesnews) December 3, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n Meanwhile, on Monday, the President tweeted that he was bringing back tariffs on Brazilian and Argentina steel,<\/a> while the administration also proposed tariffs of up to 100% on $2.4 billion in French imports<\/a>.<\/p>\n The U.S. is also preparing tariffs on $7.5 billion of European Union imports over illegal subsidies for European aircraft giant Airbus, following a World Trade Organization ruling that gave the U.S. a green light to impose the duties. The WTO ruled the EU hadn\u2019t complied with an order to end the subsidies.<\/p>\n \u201cThe run higher seen in major benchmarks in the past few months has been built in no small part on questionable foundations with near incessant positive noises on the U.S.-China trade front seemingly the major catalyst,\u201d said David Cheetham, chief market analyst at XTB Limited, in a note.<\/p>\n Read:<\/strong> Was Trump talk bluster or was he hinting that China talks could collapse?<\/a> <\/p>\n Major stock indexes rallied to a series of record highs in November, but investors and analysts have warned that markets could be in for a rougher ride if concrete progress isn\u2019t seen ahead of a Dec. 15 deadline for another round of U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports.<\/p>\n \u201cMarkets simply aren\u2019t priced for this; for a trade deal to be that far in the future \u2014 if one can even be struck at all. After weeks of making generally positive noises on a deal being very close, there is a real sense now that a deal is not so very near at all and markets need to reprice,\u201d said Neil Wilson, chief market analyst for Markets.com, in a note.<\/p>\n Combined with tariff threats on the European Union, Trump\u2019s comments could be taken as a sign the White House has no qualms about levying further tariffs \u201cand is happy using trade as a economic, political and diplomatic weapon,\u201d Wilson said.<\/p>\n U.S. stocks were also pressured Monday following a weaker-than-expected reading on the Institute for Supply Management\u2019s November manufacturing index. <\/a><\/p>\n See:<\/strong> Don\u2019t get so excited, this economist says \u2014 the trade news isn\u2019t that good<\/a> <\/p>\n Semiconductor stocks were under pressure amid growing uncertainty over U.S.-China trade. Advanced Micro Devices Inc<\/strong>.
Netlfix Inc<\/strong>.
United Health
Shares of Lands End Inc<\/strong>.
PepsiCo Inc<\/strong>.
Shares of E.l.f Beauty Inc<\/strong>.
The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note
In commodities markets, the price of a barrel of West Texas Intermediate crude oil for January delivery
The U.S. dollar edged 0.1% lower, according to the ICE U.S. dollar index
In Asia overnight, stocks traded mixed, with the China CSI 300
In Europe, stocks were trading mostly lower<\/a> \u2014 the Stoxx Europe 600
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\n DJIA, -1.47%<\/span><\/a><\/span>
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\n fell 326 points, or 1.2%, to trade at 27,450, while the S&P 500 index
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\n SPX, -1.13%<\/span><\/a><\/span>
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\n gave up 33 points, or 1.1%, to trade at 3,080. The Nasdaq Composite index\u00a0
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\n COMP, -1.13%<\/span><\/a><\/span>
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\n retreated 113 points, or 1.3%, at 8,456.<\/p>\nWhat\u2019s driving the market?<\/h6>\n
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Which stocks are in focus?<\/h6>\n
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\n AMD, -1.41%<\/span><\/a><\/span>
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\n \u00a0was down 3.5%, Micron Technology Inc<\/strong>.
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\n MU, -2.57%<\/span><\/a><\/span>
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\n \u00a0had lost 3.2% and Nvidia Corp<\/strong>.
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\n NVDA, -2.28%<\/span><\/a><\/span>
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\n \u00a0shed 4%. <\/p>\n
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\n NFLX, -1.09%<\/span><\/a><\/span>
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\n \u00a0stock after Citigroup changed the analyst<\/a> covering the streaming-video company, with new analyst Jazon Bazinet cutting the rating on the stock from buy to neutral and slashing the price target to $325 from $410.<\/p>\n
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\n UNH, -1.63%<\/span><\/a><\/span>
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\n \u00a0fell after a disappointing forecast for adjusted earnings in 2020. <\/p>\n
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\n LE, +14.21%<\/span><\/a><\/span>
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\n \u00a0rallied 7.3% Tuesday after the retailer reported rising profits, gross margin and same-store sales<\/a> in the third quarter, though revenue fell year-over-year.<\/p>\n
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\n PEP, -0.25%<\/span><\/a><\/span>
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\n \u00a0shares were up 0.3% after the beverage-and-snacks manufacturer said it planned to buy BFY Brands Inc<\/a>., maker of PopCorners snacks, for an undisclosed sum.<\/p>\n
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\n ELF, -7.81%<\/span><\/a><\/span>
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\n \u00a0fell 3.5% Tuesday after shareholder Marathon Partners urged the company<\/a> to consider a strategic overhaul, including a possible sale, in a letter to the board of directors. <\/p>\nHow are other markets trading?<\/h6>\n
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\n TMUBMUSD10Y, -5.20%<\/span><\/a><\/span>
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\n \u00a0fell 7.6 basis points to 1.759% after the president\u2019s comments<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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\n CLF20, -0.41%<\/span><\/a><\/span>
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\n \u00a0fell 17 cents, or 0.3% to $55.80 on trade concerns<\/a>, while the price of an ounce of gold for December delivery
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\n GCZ19, +1.19%<\/span><\/a><\/span>
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\n \u00a0ticked up $7.40, or 0.5%, to $1,469.70 as investors sought safe havens<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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\n DXY, -0.11%<\/span><\/a><\/span>.
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\n <\/p>\n
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\n 000300, +0.39%<\/span><\/a><\/span>
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\n \u00a0gaining 0.4%, Japan\u2019s Nikkei 225
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\n NIK, -0.64%<\/span><\/a><\/span>
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\n \u00a0declining 0.6% and Hong Kong\u2019s Hang Seng index
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\n HSI, -0.20%<\/span><\/a><\/span>
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\n \u00a0edging 0.2% lower.<\/p>\n
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\n SXXP, -0.71%<\/span><\/a><\/span>
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\n \u00a0was down 0.6%. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n