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Stocks Slide as Investors Face New Evidence of a Slowdown Stocks Slide as Investors Face New Evidence of a Global Slowdown
(about 1 hour later)
A fresh wave of worry about the trade war’s impact on the global economy hit stock markets on Wednesday, as investors faced new evidence of a slowdown in growth. Stocks tumbled for a second day on Wednesday, as investors faced new evidence that global growth is under threat.
The S&P 500 dropped more than half a percent at the start of trading, extending a drop that had started the day before, when a gauge of manufacturing activity showed a slowdown in factory output in the United States. The two day drop has ended what had been a relatively calm stretch of trading on Wall Street.
The decline was steeper in Europe. London’s FTSE 100 had dropped more than 2 percent by Wednesday afternoon, while stock benchmarks in Germany and France were also sharply lower. In Asia, stocks had weakened slightly, but not to the same extent experienced in Europe. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index closed down 0.19 percent, while the Nikkei 225 finished 0.49 percent lower. The S&P 500 dropped more than one percent in early trading Wednesday, adding to a similar sized decline the day before. The selling this week began after a key measure of manufacturing activity showed that factory output in the United States had slowed to levels last seen at the end of the financial crisis a decade ago.
On Tuesday, the World Trade Organization cut its forecast for trade growth. World trade in merchandise is expected to expand just 1.2 percent this year, in the weakest year since the heat of the financial crisis in 2009. Also on Tuesday, the World Trade Organization cut its forecast for growth in trade. World trade in merchandise is expected to expand just 1.2 percent this year, in the weakest year since the heat of the financial crisis in 2009.
Also Tuesday, a gauge of American manufacturing by the Institute for Supply Management showed that factories had slowed in September for the second straight month. And on Wednesday, a private report on hiring in the United States was slightly slower than economists had forecast. The report, released by ADP, is a precursor to the monthly jobs report from the Labor Department, though it is not necessarily indicative of what the official data will show.
The selling was sharper in Europe, where London’s FTSE 100 had dropped more than 2 percent by Wednesday afternoon. In Asia, stocks had weakened slightly, but not to the same extent experienced in Europe. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index closed down 0.19 percent, while the Nikkei 225 finished 0.49 percent lower.
In Europe, Germany has become a point of concern, with its factory orders dropping as Chinese companies, hit by tariffs on exports to the United States, purchase less German machinery.In Europe, Germany has become a point of concern, with its factory orders dropping as Chinese companies, hit by tariffs on exports to the United States, purchase less German machinery.
At the same time, Britain remains enmeshed in negotiations over Brexit and faces huge uncertainty over its future trading relationship with Europe. Prime Minister Boris Johnson is set to unveil a new proposal on Wednesday for the terms of leaving the European Union at a Conservative Party conference, but there is still a risk that Britain will leave the bloc at the end of the month without a deal.At the same time, Britain remains enmeshed in negotiations over Brexit and faces huge uncertainty over its future trading relationship with Europe. Prime Minister Boris Johnson is set to unveil a new proposal on Wednesday for the terms of leaving the European Union at a Conservative Party conference, but there is still a risk that Britain will leave the bloc at the end of the month without a deal.
The two day decline has ended a quiet period for investors in the United States. The S&P 500 had not fallen 1 percent or more on any single day in September. But trading activity could pick up with corporate earnings season for the third-quarter about to begin.