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US-STOCKS-MARKETS
US stocks tumble as hopes dim for latest trade talks
NEW YORK, Oct 9, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – wall Street stocks tumbled Tuesday as
heightening tensions between Beijing and Washington dimmed hopes for much-
anticipated trade talks later in the week.
US markets were in the red the entire session after the Commerce
Department late Monday announced new restrictions on 28 Chinese entities over
human rights violations, drawing an angry rebuttal from China.
Stocks took another leg lower during the afternoon after the US State
Department announced new visa restrictions Chinese government and Communist
Party officials alleged to have persecuted Muslims in China.
The moves come ahead of major high-level trade talks between the United
States and China that are set to begin on Thursday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended at 26,164.04, down 1.2 percent.
The broad-based S&P 500 slumped 1.6 percent, closing at 2,893.06, while
the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index tumbled 1.7 percent to 7,823.78.
Besides the new US sanctions, there were also fresh reports citing unnamed
Trump administration officials that the White House is mulling new measures
to curtail US investment in China.
“It’s not a good sign to see these type of measures being put in place
just before the trade negotiation resumes,” said Tom Cahill of Ventura Wealth
Management.
“The market is skeptical that anything good can come out of the
negotiations this week.”
Meanwhile, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell offered a fairly upbeat
appraisal of the US economy, saying policymakers still “continue to see a
sustained expansion” and that the outlook on jobs and inflation are
“favorable.”
Powell’s remarks suggest the case for further cuts to the Fed’s benchmark
lending rates could be weakening, with employment data now showing the US
jobless rate fell to its lowest level in 50 years in September.
However, futures markets overwhelmingly continue to expect the Fed to cut
interest rates later this month.
BSS/AFP/HR/0958