NEW YORK, March 27 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks traded lower on Wednesday, amid a lingering inverted yield curve and lower U.S. trade deficit in January.
At midday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 200.35 points, or 0.78 percent, to 25,457.38. The S&P 500 was down 27.56 points, or 0.98 percent, to 2,790.90. The Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 99.76 points, or 1.30 percent, to 7,591.77.
Shares of Boeing fell nearly 1 percent, after a 737 MAX jet operated by Southwest Airlines made an emergency landing in Orlando, the U.S. state of Florida, due to an engine issue.
Yet shares of Ralph Lauren rose over 1.7 percent, as U.S. leading investment bank Wells Fargo upgraded the apparel retailer's stock to "outperform" from "market perform" on upbeat growth prospects.
All of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors traded lower around midday with health care sector down over 1.3 percent leading the losers.
The U.S. yield curve inversion remained on Wednesday, further stoking anxieties about an economic slowdown.
The three-month Treasury bill yield was still higher than the 10-year note rate around midday, with both yields pulling back.
Investors were largely rattled by an inverted yield curve on Friday, as the spread between the U.S. three-month Treasury bill yield and the 10-year note rate turned negative, the first time since 2007, according to Refinitiv Tradeweb data.
An inverted yield curve happens when short-term rates surpass their longer-term counterparts, which is widely regarded as a harbinger of recession in the near future.
On the economic front, the U.S. international trade in goods and services deficit in January sharply declined 14.6 percent to 51.1 billion U.S. dollars from 59.9 billion dollars in December, the U.S. Census Bureau said Wednesday.
The overall trade deficit was narrowed, as January's exports increased 1.9 billion dollars, due to rising exports of automotive vehicles, parts, and engines, as well as foods, feeds, and beverages, such as soybeans.
In comparison, imports largely fell 6.8 billion dollars, due to less imports of capital goods, industrial supplies and materials, such as crude oil, according to the bureau. Enditem
