NEW YORK, Sept 9 (Xinhua) — United States (US) stocks ended lower on Tuesday as an escalating trade confrontation between the US and Canada, coupled with climbing crude oil prices, dented market sentiment, reported Xinhua.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 628.18 points, or 1.18 per cent, to 52,786.07. The S&P 500 lost 45.08 points, or 0.58 per cent, to 7,673.52. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index shed 85.58 points, or 0.32 per cent, to 26,421.41.
Eight of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in the red, with healthcare and financials leading the laggards by falling 2.55 per cent and 1.43 per cent, respectively.
Bucking the downward trend, energy and utilities led the gainers, advancing 1.01 per cent and 0.85 per cent, respectively.
Cross-border trade tensions intensified on Tuesday as Canada formally enacted tariffs of up to 50 per cent on approximately US$20 billion worth of US imports, targeting goods including dairy, steel, and wood products in retaliation against Washington’s duties.
Meanwhile, global energy prices advanced amid lingering supply disruption concerns in West Asia, even as Iran signalled progress in talks with Oman regarding transit protocols through the Strait of Hormuz.
West Texas Intermediate crude for October delivery gained US$1.55, or 1.69 per cent, to settle at US$93.03 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Brent crude for November delivery added US$0.92, or 0.95 per cent, to settle at US$97.92 a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.
Elevated energy costs, combined with last Friday’s stronger-than-expected August employment report, reinforced expectations of tighter monetary policy ahead of the Federal Reserve’s Sept 15-16 meeting.
According to the CME Group’s FedWatch tool, fed funds futures priced in roughly a 60 per cent probability of a 25-basis-point rate increase at the upcoming monetary meeting.
In corporate developments, pharmaceutical company Novartis plunged nearly 14 per cent following disappointing clinical trial outcomes.
Conversely, semiconductor manufacturer Intel jumped over nine per cent on reports that the company plans price increases in October.
On the corporate earnings front, video game retailer GameStop is slated to report quarterly results on Tuesday, while enterprise software giant Oracle highlights the remainder of the week’s earnings calendar.
