Investing.com – Wall Street closed lower on Wednesday as concerns over China reducing its US Treasury purchases and the US exiting NAFTA offset strong gains in financials.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed lower at 25,369. The S&P 500 closed 0.11% lower, while the Nasdaq Composite closed at 7153.57, down 0.14%.
Reuters reported Wednesday, citing two Canadian government officials, that Canada is convinced President Donald Trump will pull out of North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).
That curbed a rebound in US stocks from session lows amid a surge in financials ahead of quarterly earnings reports from JPMorgan, Blackrock (NYSE:BLK) and Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC) slated for Jan. 12.
US stocks had started the session on the back foot as traders mulled over a report suggesting that China was considering slowing or halting its purchases of US treasuries.
Some said China’s move served as a warning to the U.S. administration that it could face higher borrowing costs should it start a trade war with Beijing ahead of the new US tariff measures expected in the coming weeks.
In corporate news, Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) continued its slump lower falling 2.6% amid reports that its software patched to fix the Spectre and Meltdown chip flows is inhibiting performance.
'Bulls and Bears' on Wall Street
The top Dow gainers for the session: General Electric Company (NYSE:GE) up 2%, JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE:JPM) up 1.1% and Merck & Company Inc (NYSE:MRK)up 0.9%
Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) down 2.6%, DowDuPont Inc (NYSE:DWDP) down 1.5%, and Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) down 0.8%, were among the worst Dow performers of the session.