Thursday's Market Open: Stocks Slide On China Trade Worries Despite Positive Apple, Facebook Earnings

Worries about the prospects of a U.S.-China trade deal Thursday eclipsed corporate earnings and the Federal Reserve’s decision to cut interest rates for the third time this year.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was off 164 points at noon at 27,021 while the Nasdaq Composite dipped 20 points to 8,282 and the S&P 500 lost 14 points to 3,032.

Chinese officials have cast doubt on the prospects of a comprehensive trade deal with the United States, indicating they won’t compromise on key issues, Bloomberg reported. The report said the Chinese also are concerned about President Trump’s impulsive nature and the possibility he will nix the preliminary deal he was planning to sign next month with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

The pair had been planning to meet at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Chile Nov. 16-17, but Chilean President Sebastian Pinera canceled the summit Wednesday because of mounting civil unrest that has led to riots, arson and mass arrests.

Chinese policymakers were meeting in Beijing Thursday amid economic reports showing its manufacturing sector dropped to its lowest level since February. The National Bureau of Statistics reported the manufacturing purchasing managers’ index fell to 49.3, below the 50 level that divides expansion from contraction. The non-manufacturing gauge was at 52.8.

The news overshadowed Fed action Wednesday and corporate earnings. The Fed lowered the federal funds rate by a quarter point to keep the U.S. economy expanding and signaled it is unlikely to make any other interest rate moves in the near term.

Apple (AAPL) issued an optimistic first-quarter outlook based largely on introduction of a new iPhone in reporting its fiscal fourth quarter results. The company reported a 2% increase in revenue to $64 billion over the year-ago quarter and a 4% increase in earnings per share to $3.03. The company credited growth in services, wearables and the iPad.

“We’re very optimistic about what the holiday quarter has in store,” CEO Tim Cook said during a conference call with analysts. Apple opened up 1.5%.

Facebook (FB) reported better-than-expected third-quarter results, reporting an increase in its user base by 35 million in North America despite inquiries into the social network by regulators and lawmakers. Advertising revenue grew by 29% to $17.7 billion. Net income was up 19% to $6 billion while earnings per share increased 20% to $2.12. Facebook opened up 5%.

Global markets were mixed.

In Asia, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng indes rose 0.9% and Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 0.37% while China’s Shanghai Composite fell 0.35%. Australia’s S&P/ASX dipped 0.39%.

In Europe, London’s FTSE 100 was off 1.01% and the French CAC 40 gave up 0.3% while the German DAX was flat, off just 0.05%. The Stoxx Europe 600 was off 0.27%.

The British pound added 0.33% to $1.2943 while the euro gained 0l05% to $1.1157. The U.S. dollar index was off 0.35%.

Oil futures were lower. Crude oil gave up 1.65% to $54.15 while Brent crude was off 1.23% to $59.50. Gold and silver futures were higher.