Wall Street closed lower on Wednesday as a wave of mixed earnings, including Netflix's disappointing results, dampened risk sentiment as investors assessed reports that the Trump administration is considering curbs on exports to China made with US software.
All three major US stock indexes extended their losses after the report, with weakness in tech and communication services stocks weighing the Nasdaq down the most.
The new export curbs, which would include a wide array of goods ranging from laptops to jet engines, are some of the measures being considered in retaliation against Beijing's latest round of rare earth export restrictions, and mark yet another escalation of trade tensions between the world's two largest economies.
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he thinks he will have a "very successful meeting" with Chinese President Xi Jinping, but also said perhaps the encounter in South Korea later this month will not happen.
