Tech shares decline; pound swings on Brexit talks

Most U.S. stocks were mixed, while technology shares slumped, as investors mulled earnings reports and the prospects of trade negotiations. The pound fluctuated amid Brexit talks.

The S&P 500 had climbed from the lows of the day after President Donald Trump said a trade deal with China probably will not be signed until he meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the APEC summit next month in Chile.

In earnings, Bank of America jumped after deal fees surged, continuing a string of strong bank results. Smaller banks including Bank of New York Mellon and PNC Financial advanced after delivering solid quarterly numbers. Netflix is slated to deliver after the market closes. Earlier, the dollar edged lower and Treasuries rose after a report showed retail sales unexpectedly declined.

“Earnings are not so bad that it causes any sort of violent market reaction,” said Jeff Mills, chief investment officer at Bryn Mawr Trust Co. “But I don’t think they’re going to surprise enough to the upside to be a catalyst for a breakout.”

The Stoxx Europe 600 dropped, while benchmark indexes in Asia finished mostly higher, though most gauges trimmed the gains after China threatened to retaliate if the U.S. offered legislative support to pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong. Stocks dipped in Shanghai and the yuan weakened.

Elsewhere, Turkish stocks fell with government bonds after the U.S. brought a criminal case against one of the nation’s largest banks, in what could be an escalation of Washington’s efforts to reprimand Ankara for its military incursion into northern Syria. South Africa’s rand sank as the state-owned power company announced a new round of rolling blackouts. Crude oil futures drifted. Gold ticked higher.

Here are some key events coming up this week:

• Netflix and IBM are among U.S. companies still to report Wednesday.
• China releases third-quarter GDP, September industrial production and retail sales data on Friday.

Here are the main movers in markets:

Stocks

• The S&P 500 Index dipped 0.1 per cent  to 2,993.11 as of 11:43 a.m. New York time.
• The Dow Jones Industrial Average was little changed at 27,024.48.
• The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 0.3 per cent  to 8,125.63.
• The Stoxx Europe 600 Index declined 0.2 per cent  to 393.46.

Currencies

• The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index dipped 0.2 per cent to 1,204.02, the lowest in two months.
• The euro gained 0.3 per cent  to US$1.1067, the strongest in almost four weeks.
• The Japanese yen strengthened 0.1 per cent to 108.73 per dollar.

Bonds

• The yield on two-year Treasuries declined two basis points to 1.59 per cent.
• The yield on 10-year Treasuries dipped one basis point to 1.75 per cent.
• Germany’s 10-year yield advanced three basis points to -0.39 per cent, the highest in more than 11 weeks.
• Britain’s 10-year yield climbed one basis point to 0.707 per cent.

Commodities

• West Texas Intermediate crude increased 1.4 per cent to US$53.57 a barrel.
• Gold strengthened 0.4 per cent to US$1,486.79 an ounce.

--With assistance from Robert Brand.