Wall Street slowed by trade tensions

Wall Street ended in a disorganized Wednesday, with questions about the consequences of trade tensions continuing to hover in the market while the technology sector was struggling.

The leading New York index, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, gained 0.11% to 25,998.92 points.

The Nasdaq, with strong technological color, lost 0.23% to 7954.23 points.

The broad S & P 500 index gained 0.04% to 2888.92 points.

After starting the session with no clear direction, the indexes rallied sharply when a Wall Street Journal article claimed that Washington had proposed to Beijing to resume trade negotiations before the Trump administration imposed new punitive taxes on its banks. imports. But the effect quickly faded.

Later in the session, comments from a leader of the 3M conglomerate on the negative impact of the price increase weighed down the company’s share (-2.39%), and more generally the state of brokers’ minds, according to Peter Cardillo of Spartan Capital Securities. “When a company like 3M (which manufactures both post-its and adhesive tapes as well as safety and medical equipment, Ed) publicly indicates that its profits will be affected by higher costs, it means that taxes on imports are really starting to affect some companies, “he said. The indices also suffered a little, according to analysts Charles Schwab, the surprise drop in producer prices in August that raises questions about the future decisions of the US central bank.  The Nasdaq was further weakened by the weakness of the technology sector, particularly companies specializing in microprocessors and Apple (-1.24%). At its annual high mass on Wednesday, the computer giant has unveiled its new features, including several iPhone models and a new generation of connected watch Apple Watch but made no announcement on the iPad, its AirPods headphones or its Mac computers.

The energy sector, on the other hand, was in good shape: the index representing it in the S & P 500 rose by 0.51%.

Businesses are benefiting from rising oil prices as Hurricane Florence approaches the east coast of the United States, forcing massive evacuation of the area and boosting demand for gasoline.

The bond market was easing: the ten-year rate on the US debt declined at 3:20 pm to 2.965%, against 2.976% Tuesday night, and the 30 years at 3.107%, against 3.119% at the previous closing.