US close: Street mixed on China trade anxiety

US finished mixed but mostly weaker on Wednesday, after a session in which investors spent their time weighing up the latest trade developments between the US and China.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.18% to 25,583.75 and the S&P 500 fell 0.03% to 2,857.72, while the Nasdaq 100 managed gains of 0.09% to 7,469.54.

“The Dow avoided a major decline after the bell, dipping 0.2% to duck back under 25,600.

“That its losses weren't larger is notable given that Beijing unleashed a classic trade war tit-for-tat this Wednesday,” noted SpreadEx's Connor Campbell.

Trade war concerns remained at the forefront of investors' minds after the US said that it would start collecting 25% tariffs on $16bn-worth of Chinese imports from 23 August.

“Fears of a full-blown trade war between the world's two biggest economies are set to intensify after the Trump administration announced another round of tariffs on Chinese products on Tuesday,” said Lukman Otunuga, a research analyst at FXTM, earlier.

“With Beijing expected to fight back by targeting $16bn worth of US goods with equal tariffs, the US-China trade saga could get even messier.”

Market participants were also digesting trade balance data from China, which showed that exports rose at a year-on-year clip of 12.2% in July, up from 11.2% during the month before and beating expectations for a jump of 10%.

Import growth, on the other hand, accelerated to a pace of 27.3% year-on-year, versus a 14.1% rise in June and ahead of analysts' forecasts for a 16.2% increase.

Meanwhile, China's surplus with the US shrank a touch to $28.09bn last month from a record $28.97bn in June.

In corporate news, shares in CVS Health finished 4.14% higher after the release of its second-quarter earnings as it upped its 2018 earnings per share guidance range to $6.98-$7.08 from $6.87-$7.08.

Michael Kors picked up 6.72% at the open as the luxury fashion company's first-quarter profit and sales beat analysts' expectations and it lifted its full-year outlook.

Electric car maker Tesla fell 2.43% after Elon Musk tweeted on Tuesday that he was considering taking the company private, sending the shares up 11%.

Elsewhere, Walt Disney was down 2.21% after its quarterly earnings a day earlier missed analysts' expectations, while Match Group surged 17.28% after the dating website's second-quarter earnings and revenue topped estimates.

Dow Jones - Risers

McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $158.92 1.85%
American Express Co. (AXP) $102.78 1.84%
Pfizer Inc. (PFE) $41.43 1.41%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $43.84 0.60%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $109.49 0.56%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $49.96 0.52%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $198.02 0.49%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $258.81 0.45%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $52.70 0.44%
Boeing Co. (BA) $347.78 0.35%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $113.98 -2.21%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $139.71 -1.88%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $123.88 -1.04%
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $66.49 -0.84%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $46.15 -0.75%
Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $67.66 -0.70%
3M Co. (MMM) $207.14 -0.69%
Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) $80.73 -0.66%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $236.37 -0.61%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $129.21 -0.56%

S&P 500 - Risers

Endo International Plc (ENDP) $16.23 28.30%
CVS Health Corp (CVS) $68.17 4.16%
Boston Scientific Corp. (BSX) $34.29 3.44%
Tapestry Inc. (TPR) $47.04 2.73%
Aetna Inc. (AET) $193.69 2.69%
DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $40.38 2.49%
FMC Corp. (FMC) $89.11 2.43%
Alcoa Corporation (AA) $43.70 2.29%
Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $190.02 2.21%
Andeavor (ANDV) $151.54 2.12%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Cimarex Energy Co (XEC) $88.95 -8.62%
Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (APC) $65.15 -4.58%
Southern Co. (SO) $46.88 -4.48%
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (REGN) $374.27 -4.38%
Newell Brands Inc (NWL) $20.79 -4.11%
Host Hotels & Resorts Inc. (HST) $20.55 -3.88%
Wyndham Destinations Inc. (WYND) $43.97 -3.83%
Cardinal Health Inc. (CAH) $48.96 -3.62%
AbbVie Inc (ABBV) $93.73 -3.43%
SCANA Corp. (SCG) $38.73 -3.22%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Qurate Retail Inc. (QRTEA) $23.00 4.40%
DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $40.38 2.49%
Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (TTWO) $124.95 2.24%
Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $190.02 2.21%
Mylan Inc. (MYL) $39.23 1.79%
Workday, Inc. (WDAY) $135.01 1.70%
Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI) $6.95 1.31%
Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $1,886.52 1.29%
Ross Stores Inc. (ROST) $91.83 1.19%
Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $50.18 1.11%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (REGN) $374.27 -4.38%
NetEase Inc. Ads (NTES) $252.97 -3.28%
Tesla Inc (TSLA) $370.34 -2.43%
Dish Network Corp. (DISH) $35.85 -2.34%
Biomarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BMRN) $103.32 -2.27%
Marriott International - Class A (MAR) $121.63 -2.25%
Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $196.20 -2.10%
Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $222.00 -2.06%
Ctrip.Com International Ltd. Ads (CTRP) $40.31 -2.04%
Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD) $76.91 -1.88%