US stocks stumble on trade war fears

NEW YORK: Wall Street stocks tumbled early Monday, joining a global selloff amid expectation President Donald Trump plans new measures to limit Chinese investments in US companies.

About 25 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average had lost 1.0 percent to 24,335.94.

The broad-based S&P 500 dropped 0.9 percent to 2,731.18, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index slumped 1.3 percent to 7,596.95.

The US administration, already locked in a trade confrontation with Beijing, is expected to announce plans this week to restrict Chinese investment in US firms and curtail access to sensitive technologies.

Investors have veered between anxiety that Trump will lead the world into a value-destroying trade war, and cautious optimism that the harsh rhetoric is only a bargaining position to a more pragmatic strategy.

That dynamic has led to a jump in market volatility in recent weeks, with stocks alternatively rising and selling off.

Harley-Davidson dropped 1.3 percent after it announced it would shift some US manufacturing of the iconic motorcycles overseas to avoid retaliatory European tariffs imposed last week. Until that production is relocated, the company will absorb the higher costs of the tariffs and not pass them on to consumers.