Stocks waver along with U.S.-Canada talks

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.

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.

The S&P 500 rose 3 percent for the month and the Nasdaq was up 5.7 percent.

Benchmark U.S. crude fell 0.6 percent to $69.80 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, used to price international oils, dipped 0.5 percent to $77.42 a barrel in London.