Stocks Sink On Reports US May Limit Tech Exports To China

 

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are falling Monday following losses in Europe and Asia, and technology companies are skidding following reports that the Trump administration plans to limit high-tech exports to China and will limit Chinese investment in American technology companies. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin suggested the restrictions might apply to other countries as well. Harley-Davidson is falling after it said it will shift the production of some motorcycles to Europe in response to taxes the EU put on U.S. exports. The benchmark S&P 500 index is on pace for its worst loss since early April.

KEEPING SCORE: The S&P 500 index shed 42 points, or 1.5 percent, to 2,712 as of 11:30 a.m. Eastern time. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 369 points, or 1.5 percent, to 24,211. The Nasdaq composite fell 167 points, or 2.2 percent, to 7,585. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks slid 30 points, or 1.8 percent, to 1,654.

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US-CHINA TENSIONS: Chipmakers took losses after the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg News said the Trump administration will limit technology exports to China as well as investment by China. China is attempting to become a global leader in biotechnology, electric vehicles and other industries, and the report said the administration wants to slow Beijing's progress in those areas. President Donald Trump has threatened to put tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars in Chinese imports over complaints Beijing steals or pressures foreign companies to hand over technology and is also pressuring China to buy more U.S.-made goods.

On Twitter, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said the restrictions would be aimed at "all countries that are trying to steal our technology," not just China.

Chipmaker Micron Technology, which gets half its revenue from China, lost 6.2 percent to $53.57 and Advanced Micro Devices fell 6.4 percent to $53.52. Nvidia sank 4.9 percent to $238.80. All 72 of the technology companies listed on the S&P 500 were trading lower.

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OVERSEAS: Germany's DAX fell 2 percent and London's FTSE 100 gave up 2 percent. France's CAC 40 shed 1.5 percent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 1.3 percent. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 shed 0.8 percent and in South Korea the Kospi was little changed.

HARLEY SHIFTS: Harley-Davidson will move the production of motorcycles headed for Europe from the U.S. to overseas facilities. On Friday the European Union put tariffs on motorcycles from the U.S. as well as other goods like bourbon, peanut butter and orange juice. The EU tariffs on $3.4 billion worth of U.S. products are retaliation for duties the Trump administration is imposing on European steel and aluminum.

Harley said in a regulatory filing Monday that EU tariffs on its motorcycles exported from the U.S. jumped between 6 percent and 31 percent, which translates into an extra $2,200 per average motorcycle exported from the U.S. to the EU.

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Its stock fell 5.1 percent to $41.94.

ON THE SKIDS: Retailers and other companies focused on consumers fell as investors sold some of the stocks that have done the best this year. Amazon lost 2.8 percent to $1,667.67 and Netflix dropped 6.6 percent to $383.91.

The S&P 500 indexes of technology and consumer-focused companies are both up 10 percent this year, compared to 1.5 percent for the S&P 500 itself.

The trade tensions continued to hit industrial companies, which are facing higher costs and the possibility of tariffs that hurt their sales. Boeing skidded 3.1 percent to $328.49 and Caterpillar shed 3 percent to $135.78.

DEALS: Broadcaster Gray Television jumped 9.8 percent to $14.05 after it said it will combine with Raycom in a deal the companies valued at $3.6 billion. Campbell Soup rose 9.9 percent to $42.44 after the New York Post said Kraft Heinz is interested in buying the company. Kraft rose 0.2 percent to $63.32.

ADRIFT: Cruise lines dropped after Carnival cut its annual profit forecast. The company cited the rising cost of fuel. Carnival fell 10.3 percent to $57 while Royal Caribbean gave up 6 percent to $104.81 and Norwegian Cruises lost 8.7 percent to $47.42.

BONDS: Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.87 percent from 2.89 percent.

ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude dipped 0.2 percent to $68.42 per barrel in New York. It climbed 4.6 percent Friday, its biggest one-day gain since late 2016. Brent crude, used to price international oils, dropped 1.4 percent to $74.23 per barrel in London.

OPEC countries agreed to produce more oil Friday, but investors aren't sure the cartel will produce as much crude oil as it says it will.

CURRENCY: The dollar fell to 109.62 yen from 109.91 yen. The euro rose to $1.1686 from $1.1663.

– by Marley Jay, AP reporter

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