TheStreet
Here are five things you must know for Wednesday, Nov. 20:
1. -- Stock Futures Tumble on Doubts Over U.S.-China Trade Negotiations
U.S. stock futures fell Wednesday after China condemned a U.S. Senate resolution supporting human rights in Hong Kong and Donald Trump again threatened to increase tariffs if Washington and Beijing aren't able to negotiate a near-term trade agreement.
China's displeasure with the Senate resolution, known as the "Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act," comes at a sensitive juncture in the trade negotiations following reports from China-backed media that Beijing won't accept an agreement that doesn't include the cancellation of tariffs from Washington.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said the Senate move was designed to "bolster anti-China, extremist and violent radicals who attempt to disrupt Hong Kong," and cautioned that "all those attempts to interfere in or impede China's development will be in vain."
Trump, meanwhile, told a cabinet meeting Tuesday that "if we don't make a deal with China, I'll just raise the tariffs even higher." The president added China would need to offer a deal "I like" in order to complete the first phase of the the negotiations.
Contracts tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 111 points, futures for the S&P 500 were down 12 points, and Nasdaq futures tumbled 43 points.
The Nasdaq closed at another record high Tuesday, the only one of the three major stock indexes to finish in positive territory, as disappointing sales forecasts from Home Depot (HD - Get Report) and Kohl's (KSS - Get Report) , along with ongoing concerns about a U.S.-China trade agreement, pulled shares lower.
The Nasdaq rose 20.72 points, or 0.24%, to close at 8,570.66. The Dow sank 102.20 points, or 0.36%, to 27,934.02, while the S&P 500 slipped 1.85 points, or 0.06%, to 3,120.18.
2. -- Target and Lowe's Report Earnings Wednesday
Target's (TGT - Get Report) third-quarter earnings came in better than expected and the retailer raised its full-year profit guidance, sending shares up 10% in premarket trading to $121.90.
Lowe's (LOW - Get Report) posted stronger-than-expected third-quarter earnings and lifted its full-year profit guidance, offering a stark contrast to its larger home- improvement rival Home Depot (HD - Get Report) which but trimmed its full-year sales guidance on Tuesday. Lowe's rose 4.45% to $118.45.
The economic calendar in the U.S. Wednesday includes Oil Inventories for the week ended Nov. 15 at 10:30 a.m. ET, and minutes from the Federal Reserve's Oct. 30 meeting at 2 p.m.
3. -- Trump Will Tour Apple Plant on Wednesday
Donald Trump is scheduled Wednesday to tour an Apple (AAPL - Get Report) manufacturing plant in Austin, Texas, where Mac Pro computers are made.
Apple CEO Tim Cook has established a strong relationship with the president as the tech giant faces U.S. tariffs on imports from China.
The Trump administration is currently considering whether to exempt Apple goods from a 15% tariff that took effect Sept. 1, covering about $110 billion in Chinese imports including the Apple Watch, AirPods and parts for the iPhone, according to Bloomberg.
Trump will visit the Austin factory where Apple contractor Flex Ltd. assembles some of the company's laptops. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow are expected to accompany Trump.
"We're building the Mac Pro - Apple's most powerful computer ever - right here in Austin because we believe in the power of American innovation," Cook said in a statement released by the White House.
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4. -- Alibaba Raises More Than $11 Billion in Hong Kong Offering
E-commerce giant Alibaba (BABA - Get Report) said its roughly $11.3 billion offering on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange for institutional investors will be priced at HK$176 a share ($22.48), or about $HK88 billion.
An over-allotment clause in the sale of the 500 million shares could bring the total to $12.9 billion, just shy of the $13.4 billion first expected when it launched the offering earlier this month. The offering is likely to be the biggest of 2019.
"The company plans to use the proceeds from the Global Offering for the implementation of its strategies to drive user growth and engagement, empower businesses to facilitate digital transformation, and continue to innovate and invest for the long term," Alibaba said in a statement.
American depositary receipts of Alibaba traded in the U.S. fell 1.66% in premarket trading to $182.18.
5. -- Boeing Receives Order for 30 Dreamliners From Emirates
Boeing (BA - Get Report) received a firm order for 30 787 Dreamliners from Emirates, the Middle East's biggest carrier, in a deal valued at $8.8 billion.
The order replaces an agreement for 150 777x jets to 126 of that aircraft, and adds 30 of the 787-9 Dreamliners, said Emirates CEO and Chairman Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, who spoke to reporters at the Dubai Airshow, the Associated Press reported.
Emirates on Monday announced it would be buying 20 additional wide-body Airbus A350s, bringing its total order for the aircraft to 50 in an agreement worth $16 billion at list price. The order replaces one that Emirates announced in February for 30 Airbus A350s and 40 A330Neos.