NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. technology and consumer discretionary stocks have been insulated from global trade tensions, but if another round of U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods goes into effect, even those high-flying sectors could come down to earth.
The United States and China have already imposed tariffs on $50 billion worth of each other’s goods. The White House has proposed tariffs on an additional $200 billion worth of Chinese imports, including furniture, handbags and some computer parts.
U.S. President Donald Trump has said he is prepared to move forward with levies on an additional $267 billion - in essence, all Chinese imports into the United States.
The inclusion of consumer goods is a shift from previous rounds of U.S. tariffs, which have primarily hit the industrial sector. Shares of companies such as Boeing Co and Caterpillar Inc have risen and fallen in tandem with trade sentiment.
On Wednesday, the Trump administration said that it invited Chinese officials to restart trade talks, which has been welcomed by Beijing. U.S. stocks have perked up on the news, but that optimism could be fleeting.
“Investors in general are too predisposed to react too positively to any signs of improvement in the situation,” said Kristina Hooper, chief global market strategist at Invesco in New York. “I don’t expect the (Trump) administration to back down.”
Companies in the tech and consumer discretionary sectors have begun sounding alarm bells. A broad array of U.S. industry groups, representing companies such as Microsoft Corp, Amazon.com Inc, Walmart Inc and Mattel Inc, has voiced opposition to the new tariffs.
Even Apple Inc, whose stock has contributed heavily to
