New Boeing Worries Drag On Dow

Investors were little bothered by a Wall Street Journal report that President Xi Jinping plans to demand US rescind the ban on doing business with Huawei as a conditions for relaunching formal trade talks. Negotiators from both sides have been preparing groundwork for a meeting between Xi and President Donald Trump at the G20 summit on Saturday.

White House economic advisor Larry Kudlow dismissed the report, saying "there are no preconditions to these talks".

Adam Sarhan of 50 Park Investment said investors have been cautious ahead of the talks, but that stocks could rally on progress. "They don't need necessarily to find a deal."

Shares of Boeing slid 2.9 percent after the Federal Aviation Administration identified a new issue with the 737 MAX that could further delay its return to the sky after two deadly crashes.

Another Dow company, Walgreens Boots Alliance, jumped 4.1 percent after reporting better-than-expected third-quarter profits on increased prescription volume.

The Howard Hughes Corporation, a real estate company, soared 42.1 percent as it confirmed that it hired bankers to advise it on strategic options, including a possible sale of the company.

Food company Conagra slumped 12.1 percent on disappointment over its fiscal 2020 forecast and as fourth-quarter results were dented by heavy pricing promotion and "several isolated manufacturing-related challenges," among other issues. (AFP)