NEW YORK: US stocks opened lower on Wednesday, continuing the decline seen in the previous session amid a return of concerns about a trade dispute with China and talks with North Korea.
President Donald Trump on Tuesday cast doubt on the possibility a planned June summit with North Korea will take place, and muddied the waters further on trade talks with China in a morning tweet after a stream of criticism over his handling of the matter.
About 15 minutes into trading the benchmark Dow Jones Industrial Average had fallen 0.3 percent to 24,757.06.
The broader S&P 500 sank more than 0.3 percent, 2,715.14 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost nearly 0.3 percent to 7,358.39.
"US stocks are seeing some pressure in early action, adding to yesterday's decline, with global skittishness flaring up amid uncertainties regarding US and Chinese trade relations and next month's highly-anticipated summit between North Korea and the US," Schwab said in a research note.
However, Patrick J. O'Hare of Briefing.com said there are other factors at work in the market.
"Our take on matters is that there is an absence of buyers today, more so than a gaggle of concerted sellers, that is eroding the complexion of the futures market," he said.
"The lack of buying interest stems from a beleaguered feeling of being whipsawed by shifting opinions on political matters."
In fact, markets have whipsawed up and down in recent days as US officials have veered from hardline to hopeful and back again with regard to talks with China and North Korea.
In a tweet before markets opened, Trump said talks with China were "moving along nicely" but added that officials might need a different structure because "this will be too hard to get done."
Meanwhile, markets also will be watching for the afternoon release of the Federal Reserve's minutes from the May 1-2 monetary policy meeting to look for more hints of the central bank's thinking on inflation.
Hardware chain Lowe's gained eight percent to $92.64, while discount retailer Target slipped 4.4 percent to $72.16 after both companies missed profit and revenue targets.
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