By Mark DeCambre, MarketWatch , Chris Matthews
Marriott's stock down 5% after revealing a data breach
U.S. stocks on Friday reversed losses at the open to turn
slightly higher as investors prepare for a highly anticipated
meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi
Jinping on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Argentina.
How are benchmarks performing?
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 16 points, or 0.1% to
25,354, but had been down by as many as 72 points at the open of
trade. The S&P 500 index is up 7 points, or 0.3%, to reach
2,745, while The Nasdaq Composite Index traded 24 points higher at
7,297, a gain of 0.3%.
On Thursday, the Dow slid 27.59 points, or 0.1%, to 25,338.84,
while the S&P 500 index dropped 5.96 points, or 0.2%, to
2,737.83. The Nasdaq shed 18.51 points, or 0.3%, to 7,273.08.
The Dow is set to post a weekly gain of 4.5% and a monthly
advance of about 1%, the S&P 500 is poised for a weekly rise of
4.4% and a 1.38% November increase, while the Nasdaq is set to show
a weekly climb of 5.3%, to be flat for the month.
Read: How a looming S&P 500 death cross could chase away the
stock market's Santa rally
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/how-a-looming-sp-500-death-cross-could-chase-away-the-stock-markets-santa-rally-2018-11-29)
What's driving markets?
Trade talks between China and the U.S. in Buenos Aires are at
the center of investors' attention, as presidents Trump and Xi are
scheduled for a face-to-face meeting Saturday, where it is hoped
the two sides can come to a deal on delaying new or expanded
tariffs, which the American president has threatened to implement
in January, absent significant changes to Chinese trade policy.
The meeting comes on the heels of a week of speeches by Federal
Reserve officials who appeared to deliver a dovish message to
investors, who have been fearful that the central bank will raise
rates aggressively in 2019 after a widely expected 25 basis-point
hike in rates in December.
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/fed-officials-eye-december-rate-hike-but-stress-path-from-there-is-uncertain-minutes-2018-11-29)Trump
on Thursday said he was "close to doing something with China"
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/trump-today-president-defends-china-tariffs-ahead-of-g-20-meeting-with-xi-2018-11-29)
but wasn't sure he wanted to, citing revenue from tariffs on
Chinese imports. He tweeted that "billions of dollars" are pouring
into the U.S. Treasury from tariffs and that there is "a long way
to go."
In contrast to the protracted trade standoff between the U.S.
and China, leaders of all three North American nations gathered in
Argentina Friday to formally sign the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada
Agreement, meant to replace the Nafta pact that has governed North
American trade for more than 20 years. The agreement still needs to
be approved by the three countries legislatures before the deal can
take effect.
Investors are hopeful that the U.S.-China trade negotiations
will be resolved in a similar way as the U.S.-China-Mexico pact,
which was agreed to only after the president issued a series of
tough statements, and engaged in significant brinkmanship, before
finally compromising on a deal at the 11th hour.
What Fed speakers and data are on tap
New York Fed President John Williams said that the Federal
Reserve is undergoing a strategic review
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/feds-williams-says-strategy-review-focused-on-problem-of-too-low-inflation-2018-11-30)
of its interest-rate policy, which could lead to the central bank
tolerating higher inflation rates than it is current 2% target,
during a speech on Friday.
Meanwhile, a reading of Chicago purchasing managers index for
November was slated for 9:45 a.m. Eastern Time.
What were strategists saying?
Tom Essaye, president of the Sevens Report, argued in a Friday
morning note to clients that the market is expecting a "trade war
truce" to result from this weekend's trade talks, in which "Trump
and Xi agree to freeze tariffs at current levels, and begin a
multi-month negotiating period aimed at a comprehensive deal."
If we don't get this truce, however, and signals emerge that
current 10% tariffs on $250 billion in Chinese imports will be
raised in January, Essaye predicts a significant selloff. "We'd
likely see the post Powell bounce erased, and depending on what
happens with Italy and the EU, a serious test of support at 2600
for the S&P 500 before year end," he wrote.
"Adding to all of this, yesterday, U.S. President Trump tweeted
that 'there is a long way to go' with regards to tariffs imposed to
Chinese imports, and while speaking to reporters before departing
for Argentina, he noted, 'I think we're very close to doing
something with China but I don't know that I want to do it,' wrote
Charalambos Pissouros, senior market analyst at JFD Brokers, in a
Friday note.
"The Fed minutes confirmed the case for a December hike, but
revealed uncertainty with regards to the path of future rate
increases," he added.
Read:Why economists insist Powell wasn't as dovish as the market
thinks
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-economists-insist-powell-wasnt-as-dovish-as-market-thinks-2018-11-28)
Read:Did Fed's Powell 'light the fuse' for a year-end
stock-market rally?
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/did-feds-powell-light-the-fuse-for-a-year-end-stock-market-rally-2018-11-28)
Also see:Has Fed's Powell just led investors into a dangerous
'bear trap'?
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/has-feds-powell-just-led-stock-investors-into-a-dangerous-bear-trap-2018-11-29)
Which stocks were in focus?
Shares of Marriott International Inc. (MAR) were in focus after
the hotel management company said that it encountered a data breach
affecting hundreds of millions of its customers. Marriott's stock
was down about 5% in early Friday action.
GameStop Corp. (GME) stock is tumbling more than 7% Friday,
after the company issued weak full-year guidance for 2018. The
stock is down 26.4% on the year.
Workday Inc. (WDAY) shares were in focus before the start of
trade Friday, following a Thursday evening earnings report that
beat Wall Street expectations
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/workday-stock-gains-after-earnings-revenue-beat-expectations-2018-11-29)
for earnings and revenue in the third quarter. These beats helped
convince Stifel Nicolaus to raise its price target for the stock
from $150 to $160, and the stock is up 13%
Shares of Laboratory Corp. of America Holdings(LH) were down
10.6% Friday, after the company cut it is full-year 2018 guidance
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/labcorp-shares-slide-4-premarket-after-company-lowers-full-year-guidance-2018-11-30).
PVH Corp. (PVH) stock is up 4.9% in early trade Friday, after
the Calvin Klein parent company reported third-quarter earnings
above analysts estimates and raised its full-year 2018
guidance.
Shares of Goldman Sachs(GS) are in focus Friday, down 2.3%,
after reports
(https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-11-30/goldman-sachs-slides-with-fresh-1mdb-worries-bofaml-downgrade?utm_content=markets&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&cmpid%3D=socialflow-twitter-markets&utm_campaign=socialflow-organic)
that the Federal Reserve is intensifying its investigation into the
bank's relationship with the 1MBD sovereign-wealth fund. The news
comes as Bank of America downgraded the stock
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/goldman-sachss-stock-falls-after-bofa-merrill-cuts-rating-slashes-price-target-2018-11-30),
citing uncertainty surrounding scandal.
How are other markets trading?
Asian stocks were mostly higher on Friday
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/asian-markets-subdued-but-higher-ahead-of-us-china-trade-talks-2018-11-29),
with Japan's Nikkei gaining 0.4% on the day, while Hong Kong's Hang
Seng Index advanced 0.2% and the Shanghai Composite Index rose
0.8%.
European markets were broadly lower Friday--the Stoxx Europe 600
is trading flat, while the FTSE 100 has declined 0.4% on the
day.
Crude oil added to its November losses Friday
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/oil-slips-back-toward-50-ahead-of-looming-g-20-opec-production-talks-2018-11-30),
falling 2.3%, during month when the commodity has fallen more than
23%. Gold prices are down 0.6% Friday, while the dollar has gained
0.3%
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/dollar-strengthens-as-g-20-summit-kicks-off-2018-11-30).
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 30, 2018 10:56 ET (15:56 GMT)
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