US stocks mixed; retail earnings and Trump tariff threat in focus
Investing.com — US stocks traded in a mixed fashion Tuesday, as investors digested President-elect Donald Trump signalling higher import tariffs on China, Canada and Mexico, as well as quarterly earnings from the retail sector.
At 09:35 ET (14:35 GMT), the fell 195 points, or 0.4%, while the index gained 17 points, or 0.3%, and the climbed 95 points, or 0.5%.
The closed a a record high on Monday, as investors cheered the nomination of Scott Bessent as Treasury Secretary, but has struggled to maintain that level Tuesday.
Trump threatens more tariffs
Trump said in a social media post on Monday that he will impose a 25% tariff on all imports from Canada and Mexico, citing the inflows of allegedly illegal immigrants and drugs into the US through open borders with the two countries.
He added that he will impose an additional 10% tariff on all Chinese imports, lamenting a lack of progress on China’s part towards curbing the flow of illegal drugs into the U.S.
His threat follows promises during his campaign that he will impose a 60% tariff on all Chinese goods.
Trump’s tariff threats ramped up concerns over a renewed global trade war between the world’s biggest economies – a trend seen through much of his first term. Such a scenario bodes poorly for global trade, especially for countries with heavy trade exposure to the US.
Investors are also waiting for the release of the from the last Federal Reserve policy-setting meeting later in the session, as they look for clues over whether the central bank will continue cutting rates next month.
Earnings due from retailers
Trading volumes are expected to be muted this week, on account of Thursday’s Thanksgiving holiday.
Ahead of that, the retail sector has been in the spotlight as a number of senior companies have reported earnings.
Kohl’s (NYSE:) stock slumped 17% after the retailer cut its annual sales forecast for the third time this year, in a sign the department-store chain is struggling to draw in shoppers ahead of a deal-heavy holiday shopping season.
It also announced its CEO Tom Kinsbury would step down in January, to be replaced by Ashley Buchanan, who currently leads crafts store owner The Michaels Companies (NASDAQ:).
Best Buy (NYSE:) stock fell 6% after the electronics retailer cut its full-year sales forecast as it missed quarterly revenue expectations due to softer demand.
Dick’s Sporting Goods (NYSE:), by contrast, rose 4% after the retailer raised its full-year guidance after what CEO Lauren Hobart called an “excellent” back-to-school shopping season and better-than-expected comparable sales for its third quarter.
Intel (NASDAQ:) stock fell 0.4% after the US Commerce Department said Tuesday it was finalizing a $7.86 billion government subsidy for the tech giant, down from the $8.5 billion announced in March, after the California-based chips maker won a separate $3 billion award from the Pentagon.
Crude bounces
Crude prices rose Tuesday, bouncing after the previous session’s hefty losses as investors took stock of a potential ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah.
By 09:35 ET, the futures (WTI) gained 0.8% to $69.47 a barrel, while the contract rose 0.7% to $72.98 a barrel.
Both contracts dropped around 2% on Monday after multiple reports that Israel and Lebanon had agreed to the terms of a deal to end the Israel-Hezbollah conflict, weighing on oil’s risk premium.
(Ambar Warrick contributed to this article.)
But focus is also on key upcoming economic data, with data- the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge- due on Wednesday.
Futures reversed initial gains after Trump’s threat, which cut short momentum from a positive session on Wall Street.
