FYI: U.S. stocks slumped for a third straight session Thursday as investors parsed data that showed U.S. economic growth softened in the final three months of 2018 and an early end to the U.S.-North Korea summit.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 69 points, or 0..27%, to 25916. The S&P 500 lost 0..28% and the Nasdaq Composite fell less than 0.29%. All three major averages are on course to close out February with gains of at least 3.2%. The Dow industrials and S&P 500 are both up 11% in 2019, on pace for their best-ever start to a year since 1987, according to Dow Jones Market Data.
Stocks around the world have staged a sharp rally in 2019, with many of the economic and political developments that pressured assets at the end of 2018 having eased. Industrial stocks, which were among the groups that were pummeled on trade fears in the fourth quarter, are some of the best performers this year, will Boeing and Freeport-McMoRan surging 35% and 25%, respectively.
The S&P 500 industrial sector is up 18% in 2019, on pace for its best two-month start to a year ever, based on available data going back to 1990, according to DJMD. Still, some investors suggest stocks’ rally in 2019 has been overexuberant.
In Thursday’s action, technology stocks were among those the led U.S. losses, with HP Inc. shares tumbling 18%. The company reported earnings late Wednesday that missed sales targets for its latest quarter. HP’s Dow-listed peer Apple slipping 0.4%.
Meanwhile, shares of J.C. Penney surged 25% after the struggling department store’s fourth-quarter profit and revenue topped analysts’ expectations. The retailer also said it would close 18 department stores and nine home and furniture stores this year.
President Trump on Thursday cut short a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un after failing to reach an agreement on curbing North Korea’s nuclear-weapons program.
Haven assets responded to the summit’s early end. Gold was 0.4% lower at $1,315.40 a troy ounce after ticking higher overnight. Japan’s yen reversed its early-day losses to rise 0.3% against the dollar.
Meanwhile, the WSJ Dollar Index was flat, easing from the gains it made after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said the central bank was close to announcing plans to end its bond portfolio runoff.
Elsewhere, the Stoxx Europe 600 rose 0.1%. Japan’s Nikkei index fell 0.8% while the Shanghai Composite Index and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng both lost 0.4%.
Of the eleven S&P 500 Sectors, eight had a losing day led by Materials, while Utilities led the three winner.
WSJ:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/global-stocks-slip-after-u-s-north-korea-summit-collapses-11551344796Bloomberg:
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-02-27/asian-stocks-set-for-muted-start-treasuries-slip-markets-wrap?srnd=premiumIBD:
https://www.investors.com/market-trend/stock-market-today/dow-jones-keeps-4200-point-gain-bears/Reuters:
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-stocks/wall-st-dips-after-early-end-to-trump-kim-summit-bleak-earnings-idUSKCN1QH1PQCNBC:
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/28/stock-market-dow-in-focus-after-trump-kim-summit-ends-with-no-deal.htmlU.K.:
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/ftse-100-under-pressure-as-trump-fails-to-broker-deal-with-kim-2019-02-28/printEurope:
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/europes-markets-succumb-to-more-losses-as-global-geopolitical-tensions-rise-2019-02-28/printAsia:
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/asian-markets-mixed-amid-global-geopolitical-uncertainty-2019-02-27/printBonds:
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/28/us-bonds-treasury-yields-move-lower-after-trump-kim-summit-ends-early.htmlCurrencies:
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/28/forex-markets-dollar-us-china-trade-geopolitics-in-focus.htmlOil:
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/28/oil-markets-us-crude-production-asia-factory-output-in-focus.htmlGold
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/28/gold-markets-dollar-us-china-trade-in-focus.htmlWSJ: Markets At A Glance:
https://markets.wsj.com/usMajor ETFs % Change:
https://www.barchart.com/etfs-funds/etf-monitorSPDR's Sector Tracker:
http://www.sectorspdr.com/sectorspdr/tools/sector-trackerSPDR's Bloomberg Sector Performance Pie Chart:
https://www.bloomberg.com/markets/sectorsCurrent Futures:
https://finviz.com/futures.ashx 
