Stocks close lower on the first trading day of September, Nike leads Dow losers

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US stocks started in September on a weak note, with all major indices ending lower as investors focus on the latest developments on the trading front. But the market came out of the market towards the end of the trading day.

How did the major benchmarks behave?

The Dow Jones Industrial Average

DJIA, + 0.09%

fell 12.34 points to 25,952.48, bouncing after an intraday loss of about 158 ​​points. The S & P 500 index

SPX, -0.28%

yielded 4.80 points, or 0.2%, to 2,896.72 and the Nasdaq Composite Index

COMP -1.19%

fell 18.29 points, or 0.2%, to 8,091.25.

The S & P and Nasdaq are both out for a fifth consecutive month, while the Dow has won two consecutive months.

What led the market?

Trade tensions were at the center of investors' concerns as the United States resumed negotiations with Canada, which could lead to a revision of the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Over the weekend, President Donald Trump threatened to leave Canada with any new Nafta pact. The president of the country's largest union group said Nafta would not work if Canada did not include it.

These comments come after the talks between the United States and its northern neighbor were halted last week without agreement before the unofficial White House deadline of Friday. The US Trade Representative's office cited "progress" in "constructive" discussions.

The materials sector, strongly correlated with trade, was one of the weakest of the day, down 0.8%.

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Trump sent an official notice to Congress that he still intended to sign a revised version of Nafta by the end of November, but urged lawmakers not to block a bilateral agreement between Mexico and the United States .

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What are the targeted data?

The Manufacturing Production Survey of the Institute for Supply Management reached 61.3 in August, its highest level since May 2004.

In addition, the reading of IHS Markit in August reached 54.7 against 55.3 in July. A reading of more than 50 signals an expansion of activity.

Construction spending rose 0.1% in July.

What did the analysts say?

"Markets will continue to be on the lookout for business news as usual," said Bill Stone, Investment Director at Stone Investment Partners. "Last week, we started with the positive news of a bilateral trade agreement between the Nafta and Mexico. The week has ended without an agreement with Canada, but negotiations will continue this week. The United States also said that tariffs on an additional $ 200 billion in Chinese products will start this Thursday with China likely to fight back in kind. "

"The key point of the economy this week is Friday's employment report. He should set the tone for the rest of the month, from the Fed's meeting to views on inflationary pressures and overall growth. Bets are more than the same, good numbers, good stock markets and the ever-growing economy, "said Paul Nolte, portfolio manager at Kingsview Asset Management, in his weekly outlook.

Robert Sluymer, technical strategist at Fundstrat Global Advisors, said the market could move towards a retreat with short-term indicators suggesting that equities are entering the overbought territory.

What stocks have been developed

Nike Inc.

NKE + 0.40%

fell 3.2% after announcing that its new ad campaign would feature Colin Kaepernick, the NFL quarterback who led protests against racial injustice and police brutality by kneeling during the national anthem. The stock was one of the biggest hurdles of the Dow.

Amazon.com Inc.

AMZN, -2.19%

reached a record high of $ 2,050.50 earlier in the session, briefly giving it a market capitalization of over $ 1 trillion. This is the second US stock to reach this threshold, after Apple Inc.

AAPL, -0.65%

done a month ago. The stock closed up 1.3%.

Transocean Ltd.