US stocks languish amid escalating US-China trade tensions

Major US equity indices witnessed a weaker opening on Tuesday and were being weighed down by the escalating US-China trade disputes.

In the latest trade-related development, China is said to seek authorization from the WTO to impose trade sanctions on the US and respond to the US President Donald Trump's plans to impose tariffs on nearly all imported Chinese goods.

It is worth reporting that Trump threatened to impose fresh tariffs on an additional $267 billion, over and above already proposed $200 billion worth of Chinese goods, with the latter vowing to retaliate and fueling worries that a full-blown trade war could have negative implications for global economic growth.

Analysts, however, still hold a bullish view and anticipate that any meaningful correction in the US equity markets is likely to be short-lived. Given the recent strong positive momentum over the past 2-1/2 years or so, investors are likely to utilize the current fall as an opportunity to buy.

During the opening hour of trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost nearly 70-points to 25,792 and the broader S&P 500 Index fell around 5-points to 2,872. Meanwhile, tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index turned out to be a relative outperformer and treaded water near yesterday's closing level, around 7,925.