Stock market today: S&P 500 ends flat as weaker labor data stoke economic jitters

Investing.com-- The S&P 500 closed lower Wednesday, as weaker-than-expected labor data stoked concerns about the economy just as U.S.-China trade relations continue to sour ahead of talks expected this week between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

At 4:00 p.m. ET (20:00 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 92 points, or 0.2%, the S&P 500 ended flat the NASDAQ Composite  climbed 0.3%.

U.S. private payrolls disappoint prompted Trump to call out Powell, again

U.S. private payrolls increased far less than expected in May, according to data released earlier Wednesday, increasing by only 37,000 jobs last month after a downwardly revised 60,000 rise in April.

The ADP report was published ahead of the more comprehensive employment report for May due to be released on Friday by the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

The labor market continues to ease amid economic uncertainty from tariffs. Government data on Tuesday showed there were 1.03 job openings for every unemployed person in April, little changed from March.

This all points to reduced economic activity in the world’s largest economy, prompting Trump to demand that Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell cuts rates. 

“ADP NUMBER OUT!!! ‘Too Late’ Powell must now LOWER THE RATE,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. 

The Beige Book on Wednesday, meanwhile, also flagged worries about economic as "half of the Districts reported slight to moderate declines in activity, three Districts reported no change, and three Districts reported slight growth."

Trump, Xi may hold call this week as trade talks stall 

Investors are also looking at the deadline for U.S. trading partners to submit their "best offer" to avoid punishing import tax rates, which ends later Wednesday, and so far, only Britain has struck a preliminary trade agreement with the U.S. during Trump’s 90-day pause on a wider array of tariffs.

The White House has said that President Donald Trump will speak with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping this week, just days after Trump accused Beijing of violating a prior agreement to ease tit-for-tat levies. China has refuted the allegations.

The president’s tariff agenda is also facing legal challenges within the country. 

Writing on Truth Social on Wednesday, Trump called Xi "very tough" and "extremely hard to make a deal with".

"Markets may also be adopting a slightly more optimistic stance on U.S.-China trade tensions ahead of the scheduled Trump-Xi call this week," strategists at ING said in a note to clients. "Recently, such direct talks have eased trade pressures."

That said, Trump earlier signed a proclamation raising his tariffs on steel and aluminum to 50% from 25%, making good on his earlier threat, with the higher duties effective from Wednesday. 

CrowdStrike slumps on soft guidance 

In the corporate sector, CrowdStrike (NASDAQ:CRWD) stock slumped after the cybersecurity company reported revenue guidance for the current quarter that fell short of expectations, overshadowing fiscal first-quarter earnings that topped Wall Street estimates.

Dollar Tree (NASDAQ:DLTR) stock fell after the discount retailer declined to lift its full-year guidance, unlike its rival Dollar General (NYSE:DG), despite reporting better-than-anticipated net sales in its fiscal first quarter as cost-conscious customers grappling with tariff-driven uncertainty sought out bargains.

On the flip side, Hewlett Packard Enterprise (NYSE:HPE) stock rose after the server maker beat second-quarter revenue and profit estimates, driven by demand for its artificial-intelligence servers and hybrid cloud segment

Asana Inc (NYSE:ASAN) fell sharply after the enterprise software company reported Q1 guidance that fell short of analyst estimates. 

Beyond earnings, Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) fell more than 3% after data showed further weakness, with U.S. sales down 11% in May as well as ongoing declines in Europe.   

Peter Nurse, Ambar Warrick contributed to this article