Key market indexes closed lower Thursday amid reports the Trump administration is poised to slap another round of tariffs on Chinese goods.
XReports said that Trump could impose the tariffs on an extra $200 billion in China imports as early as next week. The news caused indexes to tumble in afternoon trading.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 0.5%, the S&P 500 slid 0.4% and the Nasdaq dipped 0.3% in the stock market today. Small caps fared a bit better as the Russell 2000 gave up 0.1%. Preliminary figures showed slightly higher volume on both the NYSE and Nasdaq.
Biggest blue chip losers included Caterpillar (CAT) and Nike (NKE), down about 2% each. Only four Dow stocks bucked the decline. Apple (AAPL), up nearly 1%, was the biggest Dow gainer. The stock marked a new high for the third straight session. It's extended from a 194.30 flat-base entry cleared Aug. 1. The tech giant on Thursday announced a Sept. 12 event, where it's expected to unveil its latest iPhones.
Video game makers, generic drug and discount retailers led the downside among IBD's 197 industry groups. Energy and telecom stocks were among the few gainers.
The gaming software group skidded more than 4% as Electronic Arts (EA) weighed with a 10% plunge. Shares gapped down below the 50-day moving average after company announced the delay of its new "Battlefield" video game and cut its annual sales forecast. The stock closed at its lowest level in nearly four months.
Several retailers got hammered including Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF), which gapped down and plunged 17% in heavy trade. The stock crashed below its 50-day and 200-day lines. The teen clothing chain's earnings topped views, but it missed on same-store sales and revenue. It also gave a weak forecast.
Discount retailer Dollar Tree (DLTR), which disappointed on both earnings and same-store sales, sank 15%.
Pot Stocks Not So Hot
Marijuana stocks took a breather after Wednesday's huge gains. Cronos Group (CRON) stumbled 28% after short-seller Citron Research alleged the cannabis producer isn't properly disclosing the size of its distribution agreements. Peer pot stocks Tilray (TLRY) and Canopy Growth (CGC) lost 5% and 4%, respectively.
On the upside, Ciena (CIEN) surged 12% to its highest level in more than 10 years. Volume ran about nine times more than usual. Shares are now extended from a 27.83 buy point of a long cup with handle base cleared on Aug. 24.
The networking gear maker announced fiscal Q3 results that easily beat views on both the top and bottom lines. Its 37% profit growth was the best in 10 quarters and 12% sales gain was the highest in 11 quarters. It also guided higher for current-quarter sales. Ciena expects revenue between $845 million and $875 million. The midpoint, $860 million, is above analysts' forecast for $849 million.
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