Stocks on Wall Street plunged early Wednesday after US President Donald Trump unleashed a flurry of strong words against China's trade style, while sullen consumer optimism figures elevated worries regarding the repercussion of a prolonged economic tussle between the two countries.
Major indexes in New York opened the sessions higher on upbeat comments on trade discussions from Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin but waned after latest numbers indicated that U.S. consumer exuberance for the current month dropped the most in three quarters to 125, way off analysts' projections of 133.
Wall Street's retail index shed 0.5 percent, while a 1.3 percent retreat in electronic commerce behemoth Amazon (AMZN) was the largest drag on the NASDAQ.
Gold and silver analyst Everett Millman said the latest data comes a bit of a worry, especially since "consumer optimism has been quite high, at least in the US."
Investors, he points out, will now seek other data set later this week. This includes the central bank's preferred barometer for inflation, for more signs of stability in the American economy.
More on the US market, here are some quick numbers for early Wednesday's session: the Dow Jones Industrial (DJIA) dropped 13 points, or 0.06 percent, at 26,936.81, the S&P 500 also weakened 5.71 points, or 0.2 percent, at 2,985.05.
The NASDAQ Composite fell 52.49 points, or 0.64 percent, at 8,058.97. Declining issues outweighed market advancers for a 1.30-to-1 ratio on the New York Stock Exchange and a 2.42-to-1 ratio on the NASDAQ.
Eight of the 10 biggest S&P sectors fell, with the energy segment retreating 1.12 percent, citing a plunge in global oil prices. Only the consumer staples, real estate, and utilities kept their pace higher.
In the tech department, Apple Inc (AAPL) shone rather bright, advancing 0.5 percent after ratings agency Jefferies placed a "Buy" rating on the stock and underscored the iPhone manufacturer's 5G capability.
In video and entertainment streaming, Netflix Inc (NFLX) was down 3.5 percent to a near nine-month cellar after Pivotal Research trimmed down its price forecast.
In the apparel and accessories sector, Nike Inc shed 0.5 percent prior to the world's biggest athletic firm's three-month sales output following Wednesday's after-hours trade.
The S&P index posted 30 new 52-week peaks and one new low, while NASDAQ registered 35 new highs and 69 new lows.
