The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Stocks waver along with trade talks
The U.S. and Canada were unable to complete a trade deal, but negotiations may happen next week.
NEW YORK » Stocks hardly budged Friday as the U.S. and Canada were unable to complete a trade deal, but the two sides intend to continue negotiating next week.
Energy companies slipped along with oil prices Friday and high-dividend stocks also fell. Technology companies and retailers made some modest gains. Trading was very light ahead of the Labor Day holiday in the U.S. on Monday.
Investors hoped the two countries would finish the outlines of a revamped NAFTA pact after the U.S. and Mexico announced a preliminary agreement Monday. Right before the markets closed, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said talks will resume on Wednesday.
President Donald Trump says he is willing to make a deal with just Mexico, excluding Canada, but Wall Street is confident the final deal will include all three.
Katie Nixon, chief investment officer for Northern Trust Wealth Management, said Trump will probably submit the outlines of a U.S.-Canada trade deal to Congress soon. But the trade war between the U.S. and China may drag on for months, if not longer, and Nixon said that could stop businesses from investing and affect the economy and the stock market.
“These things will have to be resolved one way or another for investors to regain the kind of confidence it’s going to take to propel the markets meaningfully forward,” she said.
The S&P 500 index was down for most of the day but inched up 0.39 points to close at 2,901.52. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 22.10 points, or 0.1 percent, to 25,964.82.
The Nasdaq composite rose 21.17 points, or 0.3 percent, to 8,109.54. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks gained 8.40 points, or 0.5 percent, to a record high of 1,740.75.
Ford declined 2.3 percent to $9.48 following reports the company canceled plans to import a version of the Ford Focus that is made in China, citing the tariffs proposed by the Trump administration.
Otherwise there weren’t many developments on trade, and investors responded instead to the few remaining company earnings reports in the current cycle.
Gun and hunting and camping gear maker American Outdoor Brands skyrocketed 43.6 percent to $14.03. The company said sales picked up and it cut costs while offering fewer discounts. The stock erased big losses from earlier in the year.
Lululemon Athletica jumped 13.1 percent to $154.93 after it raised its forecasts for the rest of the year following a strong second quarter. Shares in the yoga gear maker have nearly doubled in value this year.
Discount retailer Big Lots sank 10.1 percent to $43.05 after its earnings and sales fell short of analysts’ projections.