Stocks closed slightly lower on Wall Street, giving the market its third straight drop and more in Thursday’s Stock Market Update.
Technology stocks were the biggest losers Thursday. Many chipmakers and companies that make hardware rely on China for sales and supply chains. Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ: AMD) slid 3.5% and Lam Research (NASDAQ: LRCX) fell 3.7%.
Those losses offset gains in the energy, communication services and health care sectors.
China’s Commerce Ministry batted away rumors that the talks were in trouble. A ministry spokesman said Beijing was committed to continuing discussions on core concerns. The Wall Street Journal is also reporting that China’s chief negotiator has called for more face-to-face negotiations.
Optimism that Washington and Beijing were nearing a “phase one” trade deal helped pave the way for gains in the market in recent weeks, including a string of all-time highs for the major stock indexes. Stocks have receded from those highs the past few days as investors have grown more doubtful about a trade resolution. The selling has the S&P 500 on track for its first weekly loss after six straight weeks of gains.
TD Ameritrade (NASDAQ: AMTD) soared 16.9% after a report that Charles Schwab was in talks to acquire the company.
Consumer product makers also fell broadly. Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ: KHC) dropped 2.7%.
The price of U.S. crude oil climbed 3.4%, giving energy stocks a lift. Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) rose 2.4%.
Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 1.77% from 1.74% late Wednesday. The rise in bond yields, which drive up the interest rates banks charge for mortgages and other loans, helped boost financial sector stocks. Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) added 0.5%.
STOCK MARKET UPDATE
KEEPING SCORE: The S&P 500 fell 4 points, or 0.2%, to 3,103. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 54 points, or 0.2%, to 27,766. The Nasdaq fell 20 points, or 0.2%, to 8,506.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller company stocks lost 0.4%.
Major stock indexes in Europe finished lower.
ANALYST’S TAKE: The market will remain choppy and risky as long as the trade war and threat of new tariffs looms over Wall Street, said Barry Bannister, head of institutional equity strategy at Stifel.
“We don’t want to see tariffs on consumer goods that get passed on directly to retail purchasers because they’re the last leg on which the economy is standing right now,” Bannister said.
Bannister warned that the market could be in for a significant decline before the end of the year if the U.S. and China can’t make progress. He also said the risk of a larger recession has not disappeared.
DEALS OF THE DAY: Tiffany (NYSE: TIF) jumped 2.6% following a report that LVMH would raise its bid for the company.
PayPal (NASDAQ: PYPL) slipped 1.4% after saying it would buy Honey Science, which helps people find coupons and discounts while they shop online.
MIXED SHOPPING BAG: Retailers continued to report a mixed batch of earnings. Macy’s (NYSE: M) fell 2.3% after cutting its profit and sales forecast. Investors rewarded Victoria’s Secret owner L Brands (NYSE: LB) with a 7.4% gain after the company met Wall Street’s profit expectations.
Several other well-known retailers will report earnings later Thursday, including Nordstrom and Gap.
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