Stocks Ended Sharply Lower as Trade War Escalated

U.S. stocks dropped on Wednesday, breaking a four-session streak of gains after Washington’s threat to impose tariffs on an additional $200 billion worth of Chinese goods fanned trade war fears. At close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 219.21 points, or 0.88%, to 24,700.45. The S&P 500 lost 19.82 points, or 0.71%, to 2,774.02. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 42.59 points, or 0.55%, to 7,716.61.

Oil futures finished sharply lower Wednesday, as fears of flagging demand and renewed production from Libya overshadowed a report showing the biggest weekly drop in domestic crude supplies in nearly two years. August West Texas Intermediate crude fell $3.73, or 5%, to $70.38 a barrel. September Brent crude dropped $5.46, or 6.9%, to $73.40 a barrel.

The United States signed an agreement with ZTE Corp that paves the way for the Chinese tech company to resume operations after a nearly three-month old ban on doing business with American suppliers, the U.S. Commerce Department said on Wednesday.