· Wall Street lost ground on Wednesday as weak U.S. economic data and simmering geopolitical tensions spooked buyers away from the equities market, despite a string of generally positive third-quarter earnings reports.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI fell 22.82 points, or 0.08%, to 27,001.98, the S&P 500 .SPX lost 5.99 points, or 0.20%, to 2,989.69 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC dropped 24.52 points, or 0.3%, to8,124.18.
U.S. retail sales contracted in September for the first time in seven months, according to the Commerce Department, in a sign that cracks might be spreading from the troubled manufacturing sector to the broader economy.
U.S.-China trade uncertainties increased after the U.S. House of Representatives riled Beijing by passing pro-democracy legislation in support of Hong Kong.
President Donald Trump said he would probably not sign any trade deal before he meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the upcoming APEC Forum in Chile, but said a partial trade deal was being formalized.
· Asia markets traded cautiously on Thursday, taking cues from other global markets where weak economic data, persisting trade-war fears and worries over Brexit kept investors on the sidelines.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 and Topix were largely flat in early trade. In South Korea, the Kospi was flat, while the Kosdaq rose 0.4%. Australia’s ASX 200 slipped 0.07% as the materials sector fell 1.33%.
The session in Asia follows an overnight session where U.S. stocks slipped on weak economic data while European equities traded without any real direction as investors sought guidance over Brexit negotiations.
Reference: Reuters, CNBC
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