Stocks Fall for Second Week on Trade Concerns Markets Wrap

Stocks Fall for Second Week on Trade Concerns: Markets Wrap

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U.S. stocks fell for the first time in four days, with technology shares bearing the brunt of the selling in a market rattled by a barrage of trade-related headlines. The dollar rose.

The S&P 500 declined a second week for the first time this year amid speculation U.S.-Chinese trade negotiations reached an impasse after tit-for-tat tariffs soured proceedings. Friday’s slump halted a three-day rally sparked by optimism the two sides would eventually reach a deal. The Nasdaq 100 slid 1%, with chipmakers under pressure a second day after the Trump administration threatened to ban Huawei Technologies Co. products.

Ten-year Treasury yields were little change at 2.39%, while the dollar rose to around year highs. Oil fell toward $62 a barrel.

The late-day sell-off underscored the fragile mood on financial markets roiled by two weeks of concern that escalating trade war will undermine global growth. President Donald Trump took steps toward calming nerves by postponing any tariffs on Japanese and European cars, while agreeing to end levies on Canadian steel and aluminum imports. But the status of talks with China remained unclear as investors headed into the weekend.

“What’s happening in markets is there’s this push and pull idea of what’s happening with the trade war with China. That’s obviously what’s on everyone’s minds,” said Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer for Independent Advisor Alliance.

Meanwhile, iron ore rose to the highest level in almost five years. The pound weakened as U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May agreed to set a timeline to quit and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn walked out of cross-party Brexit talks. MSCI’s gauge of emerging-market stocks fell to its lowest since January. Bitcoin slumped as much as 14%, before paring losses as this month’s surge for cryptocurrencies was tested.

Here are the main market moves:

Stocks

• The S&P 500 Index fell 0.6% to 2,859.53 as of 4 p.m. New York time, the second weekly decline.
• The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.4% to 25,764.00.
• The Stoxx Europe 600 Index dipped 0.4%.
• The U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index fell 0.1%.

Currencies

• The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index climbed 0.3% to the highest in more than 21 weeks.
• The euro fell 0.1% to $1.1165.
• The British pound dipped 0.6% to $1.2726.
• The Japanese yen fell 0.1% to 110.00 per dollar.

Bonds

• The yield on 10-year Treasuries fell less than one basis point to 2.39%.
• Germany’s 10-year yield decreased one basis point to -0.1%.
• Britain’s 10-year yield declined four basis points to 1.034%.

Commodities

• West Texas Intermediate crude dropped 0.2% to $62.71 a barrel.
• Gold fell 0.6% to $1,278.90 an ounce.