Xi-Trump summit on trade not imminent, says U.S. ambassador to China
U.S. stock futures fell on Friday, pointing to a fifth straight session of losses for Wall Street, after a slump in Chinese exports piled onto concerns about slowing global growth.
Investors are also braced for U.S. jobs data due later.
How did major indexes fare?
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures YMM9, -0.55% fell 98 points, or 0.4%, to 25,405, while S&P 500 futures ESM9, -0.52% were down 10.6 points, or 0.4%, to 2,744.50. Nasdaq-100 NQH9, -0.65% futures dropped 37 points, or 0.5%, to 7,019.
On Thursday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -0.78% fell 200.23 points, or 0.8%, to 25,473.23. The S&P 500 index SPX, -0.81% dropped 0.8% to 2,748.93 and the Nasdaq Composite Index COMP, -1.13% shed 1.1%, to 7,421.46.
With one session left, the Nasdaq is facing a 2.2% drop for the week, while the Dow industrials and S&P 500 are off around 2% each.
What’s driving the market?
Tumbling 4.4%, Chinese stocks logged their worst one-day percentage drop since October on Friday, after the nation reported a 20% drop in February exports on the heels of a 9.1% gain in January. Officials attributed the plunge to sagging demand and some distortions from the Lunar New Year holiday. But economists said that even adding those two months together, the data looked weak.
And China’s biggest brokerage, Citic Securities, hit People’s Insurance Group of China 601319, -9.98% with a rare sell rating, citing concerns over valuations, according to Reuters. Those shares slid 4% in Hong Kong, after falling as much as 10% at one point.
China’s news adds to global growth concerns, with investors still reeling from a more dovish-than-expected European Central Bank, which announced new measures to support a slowing economy on Thursday. That included fresh long-term loans to European financial institutions and a surprise pledge to hold off on any interest-rate increases until at least the end of the year.
Other data on Friday showed German manufacturing orders fell sharply in January, though December data was revised upward.
Investors are also bracing for U.S. jobs data Friday, with February nonfarm payrolls due at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time, alongside the unemployment rate and average hourly earnings. Economists polled by MarketWatch are forecasting the creation of 178,000 new jobs, and a downward revision for January’s 304,000 spike.
And uncertainty was lingering over a U.S.-China trade deal. Washington and Beijing have yet to set a date for a summit to resolve their trade dispute, the U.S. ambassador to China, Terry Branstad, said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal. Branstad said negotiators need to further narrow the gap in their positions, including over enforcement of a potential deal, before any summit arrangements are made.
How did other markets trade?
Asian stocks closed lower across the board, led by that big loss for the Shanghai Composite SHCOMP, -4.40% and a 2% drop for the Nikkei 225 NIK, -2.01%Investors sought shelter in perceived safe haven assets such as the Japanese yenUSDJPY, -0.40% which weighed on the U.S. dollar DXY, -0.18% Gold pricesGCJ9, +0.55% also benefited.
Oil CLJ9, -2.31% prices fell along with equities.
European stocks tracked global equities lower, with the Stoxx Europe 600 indexSXXP, -0.83% falling 0.5%.