WASHINGTON: Wall Street stocks lost ground Thursday as investors digested US jobless claims data while President Donald Trump held a long-awaited call with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
Shortly after trading began, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.3 percent to 42,301.28, while the broad-based S&P 500 Index lost 0.2 percent at 5,957.76.
The tech-focused Nasdaq Composite Index fell 0.2 percent to 19,428.73.
All three indexes opened higher before fluctuating in early trading.
The movements came as Trump and Xi held a phone call according to Chinese state media, amid hopes that the leaders can help the world’s two biggest economies reach a longer-lasting truce in trade tensions.
Wall Street climbs as tech boost offsets economic worries
While Washington and Beijing slapped tit-for-tat levies on each other’s goods in recent weeks – bringing tariff levels to three digits and snarling supply chains – they reached a deal to de-escalate in May.
Trump has since accused China of violating the terms of their pact, a claim that Beijing pushed back on.
“Of all the bilateral deals, the most important one is with China,” said Christopher Low of FHN Financial, adding that markets are awaiting any signs of developments.
Investors were also digesting jobless claims data which ticked higher for the week ending May 31, with concerns that the figures are signaling weakening labor market conditions.
Meanwhile, Commerce Department data released early Thursday showed that the US trade deficit narrowed sharply in April on a pullback in imports while Trump’s global tariffs kicked in.
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