Stocks ended the day mixed Wednesday as threats from both the U.S. and China raised concerns about the completion of a trade deal this week.
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders reiterated comments made earlier by President Trump that Chinese negotiators "just informed" the White House they are "coming to the U.S. to make a deal" on trade.
"China has just informed us that they (Vice-Premier) are now coming to the U.S. to make a deal. We'll see, but I am very happy with over $100 Billion a year in Tariffs filling U.S. coffers ... great for U.S., not good for China!" Trump tweeted.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended up 2.24 points, or 0.01%, to 25,967 on Wednesday. The S&P 500 was down 0.16% and the Nasdaq slipped 0.26%.
China's Vice Premier Liu He is scheduled to arrive in Washington on Thursday for two days of trade talks. Trump earlier this week threatened to raise tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods to 25% from 10% on Friday. The U.S. Trade Representative's office filed a public notice Wednesday stating that tariffs on about $200 billion of Chinese products would increase to 25% from 10% on Friday "in light of the lack of progress in the additional rounds of negotiations since March 2019." In response, China's commerce ministry said Wednesday it would take retaliatory measures if Washington went ahead with a plan to raise tariffs on Chinese imports on Friday. "The Chinese side deeply regrets that if the US tariff measures are implemented, China will have to take necessary countermeasures," the ministry said.Meanwhile, Reuters reported that Washington received a diplomatic cable from China last Friday with edits that "would blow up months of negotiations." China had filled the document with revisions that undermined core U.S. demands, Reuters said, citing three U.S. government sources and three private sector sources briefed on the talks.
Electronic Arts (EA - Get Report) climbed after the video game maker beat analysts' sales forecasts in its fiscal fourth quarter and said demand for its new "Apex Legends" release will help drive gains in the coming financial year. Shares rose 1.2% to $93.88.
Lyft (LYFT) was down after the ride-sharing company reported a wider-than-expected first-quarter loss but better-than-expected revenue and guidance. Shares tumbled 10.8% to $52.91.
Telecommunications company Sprint (S - Get Report) fell 2.9% to $5.62 after its reported a wider-than-expected fourth-quarter loss and a slump in new phone subscribers as it prepares to merge with rival T-Mobile US (TMUS - Get Report) .