Dow sank 173, decliners over advancers better than 2-1 & NAZ was off 65. The MLP index lost 1+ to the 365s & the REIT index fluctuated in the 346sa. Junk bond funds slid lower & Treasuries went higher, taking the yield on the 10 year Treasury down 3 basis points to 2.9%. Oil dribbled lower in the 65s & gold fell 6 to 1268.
AMJ (Alerian MLP Index tracking fund)
US stock market opens lower as investors gauge US-China trade tensions
China threatens to go after Dow index giants next in trade war
Leading indicators up in May, still short of expectations
Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said that rising tensions in trade negotiations between the US & the rest of the world will help lower trade barriers for American companies. "The ultimate objective of the president is to reduce tariffs, reduce trade barriers and make an open level playing field for U.S. companies all around the world, whether it's in China or anywhere else. That is the end game that we are seeking," he said. "In order to get there, we've had to do some other measures." Trade tensions with China rose to new highs Mon when Pres Trump instructed the US trade representative to identify $200B worth of Chinese goods for additional tariffs at a rate of 10%. "So what we have to do is create an environment where it's more painful for these parties that have these huge trade barriers ... got to make it more painful for them to keep those barriers than to get rid of them," Ross added. The administration put tariffs of 25% steel imports & 10% on aluminum imports from Canada, Mexico & the EU earlier this month. The US initially gave those allies a reprieve from those duties, but the exemptions expired.
Commerce Secretary Ross: 'The ultimate objective of the president is to reduce tariffs'
Stocks are having a tough time attracting investors with continued trade worries. No relief is in sight. The chart below shows the Dow had a good run in May & into Jun, but selling as returned & a test of 24K is approaching (less than 500 away).
Dow Jones Industrials
AMJ (Alerian MLP Index tracking fund)
| CL=F | Crude Oil | 64.85 | -0.86 | -1.3% |
| GC=F | Gold | 1,267.20 | -7.30 | -0.6% |
Stocks fell as investors gauged increasing trade tensions between the US & China. A
Chinese gov-owned tabloid said that there's a chance
China may need to adopt a “hard-line approach” targeting US firms
listed on the Dow, if Pres keeps up
with his trade threats. “China does not want a
trade war, but if Chinese companies suffer great losses due to Trump's
protectionist trade policies, China will have no choice but to fight
back in a bid to safeguard the interests of Chinese investors,” the
Global Times said. The Dow opened 0.3% lower & the S&P 500 fell 0.1%. But tech-heavy NAZ rose 0.2%. Yesterday US stock indices were mixed, as
traders moved to look past concerns of a trade war which have pressured
stocks this week. The Dow fell 42 to 24,657. The S&P 500 ticked 4
points higher to 2767 & the NaAZ rose 55 to
7781. In today's trading in Asia, China’s Shanghai Composite ended the day down 1.4% to a 2-year low & Hong Kong's Hang Seng closed the day also down 1.4%. Japan's Nikkei index finished the session higher by 0.6%. Financial
shares may be active, as the Federal Reserve prepares to
begin releasing the first round of results from the central bank's
annual stress tests. On the economic agenda, the Bank of England left its key interest rate unchanged at 0.50%, as expected. If the economy is turning the corner, the idea of an Aug rate increase could be on the table. In Europe, London's FTSE was lower by 0.7%, Germany's DAX was lower by 1.1% & France's CAC was off 0.7%.
US stock market opens lower as investors gauge US-China trade tensions
Dow members Boeing (BA), Apple (AAPL) & Nike (NKE) may be targeted
by the Chinese as the trade war with the US rages on, according to
The Global Times a state-controlled tabloid. China
may need to adopt a “hard-line approach” targeting US firms listed on
the Dow, if Pres Trump keeps up
with his trade threat antics, the paper reported. The
30 companies that comprise the weighted Dow
are among the world's biggest & storied companies may be some of
the first to bear the brunt of China’s countermeasures,” the outlet
added. Trump has been pounding the tariff message all
week. On Mon, Trump threatened to hit $200B of Chinese imports
with 10% tariffs, if the country follows through with its retaliation
against tariffs on $50B in imports, already announced. The US & China have been in a tit-for-tat over trade since early May, after
they both failed to reach a compromise on Trump's complaints over what
he described as unfair Chinese trade practices & a $375B trade
deficit with the country. “China is in full
combat mode and prepared to strongly respond to any probable threat or
economic assault from Trump,” the Global Times reiterated in its report.
China threatens to go after Dow index giants next in trade war
The Conference Board's Leading Economic Index increased 0.2% in May, short of expectations. The index was expected increase 0.4% in May. May's increase marks the 7th month of gains, after jumping 0.4% to 109.4 in Apr. The measurement is used to
forecast global economic trends & keep tabs on the US economy. The
Conference Board, a business research association, determines a
composite value based on 10 key metrics, including manufacturers' new
orders, stock prices & average weekly unemployment claims, to create
the composite value.
Leading indicators up in May, still short of expectations
Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said that rising tensions in trade negotiations between the US & the rest of the world will help lower trade barriers for American companies. "The ultimate objective of the president is to reduce tariffs, reduce trade barriers and make an open level playing field for U.S. companies all around the world, whether it's in China or anywhere else. That is the end game that we are seeking," he said. "In order to get there, we've had to do some other measures." Trade tensions with China rose to new highs Mon when Pres Trump instructed the US trade representative to identify $200B worth of Chinese goods for additional tariffs at a rate of 10%. "So what we have to do is create an environment where it's more painful for these parties that have these huge trade barriers ... got to make it more painful for them to keep those barriers than to get rid of them," Ross added. The administration put tariffs of 25% steel imports & 10% on aluminum imports from Canada, Mexico & the EU earlier this month. The US initially gave those allies a reprieve from those duties, but the exemptions expired.
Commerce Secretary Ross: 'The ultimate objective of the president is to reduce tariffs'
Stocks are having a tough time attracting investors with continued trade worries. No relief is in sight. The chart below shows the Dow had a good run in May & into Jun, but selling as returned & a test of 24K is approaching (less than 500 away).
Dow Jones Industrials
No comments:
Post a Comment