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* Chipmakers fall on report of unlikely Huawei waiver
extension
* Trump sought foreign meddling in 2020 election - Report
* Facebook dips on report of antitrust investigation
* Indexes down: Dow 0.34%, S&P 0.41%, Nasdaq 0.79%
(Updates to early afternoon)
By Ambar Warrick and Medha Singh
Sept 26 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes fell on
Thursday after a report that the United States is unlikely to
extend a waiver allowing American firms to supply China's
Huawei, added to worries over an inquiry into the impeachment of
President Donald Trump.
The Philadelphia semiconductor index .SOX , which includes
a number of companies that supply to the Chinese telecom
equipment maker, fell 0.41% after Bloomberg's report on Huawei
Technologies Co Ltd. "It has been a recurring theme with China. It's one step
forward and one step back," said Scott Brown, chief economist at
Raymond James in St. Petersburg, Florida.
"We'll probably see a little back and forth, and a little
bit of volatility for at least the next few weeks."
A whistleblower report released earlier in the day alleged
that Trump not only abused his office in attempting to solicit
foreign interference in the 2020 U.S. election, but that the
White House also tried to "lock down" evidence about that
conduct. The report is seen as central to the impeachment
inquiry. "It creates more uncertainty as it continues to heat up ...
the whistleblower's complaint appeared a bit more damaging than
market participants were assessing," Raymond James' Brown added.
The S&P energy sector .SPNY , down 1.41%, was the worst
performer among the 11 major S&P sectors, tracking lower oil
prices after a rebound in Saudi Arabian supply. O/R
The defensive consumer staples .SPLRCS , utilities
.SPLRCU and real estate .SPLRCR led gains.
The three sectors are also the best performing S&P indexes
this quarter, as investors switched to defensive plays in the
face of escalating Sino-U.S. trade tensions and mixed data that
has fanned global economic growth concerns.
Facebook Inc FB.O slipped 2.4% as a person familiar with
the matter told Reuters that the U.S. Justice Department will
open an antitrust investigation of the social media company. The
stock was among the largest drags on the Nasdaq. Healthcare stocks .SPXHC shed 1%, looking at their fourth
day of losses.
At 13:18 ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI was
down 90.96 points, or 0.34%, at 26,879.75, the S&P 500 .SPX
was down 12.28 points, or 0.41%, at 2,972.59. The Nasdaq
Composite .IXIC was down 63.58 points, or 0.79%, at 8,013.80.
The benchmark S&P 500 index came within spitting distance of
its July all-time high last week, but has since widened the gap
by nearly 2% on conflicting trade headlines and political
uncertainty.
Shares of fitness startup Peloton Interactive Inc PTON.O
slipped 7.3% in their market debut. Leisure cruise operator Carnival Corp CCL.N dropped 8.6%
and was set for its worst day in six months after it cut its
full-year profit forecast for the third time on the back of
higher fuel prices. Shares in one of this year's market success stories, Beyond
Meat BYND.O , jumped 10.2% as it added McDonald's Corp MCD.N
to a growing list of clients for its plant-based patties.
Declining issues outnumbered advancers for a 1.42-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and a 2.28-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded 30 new 52-week highs and five new
lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 24 new highs and 89 new lows.