New York equity index futures were lower on Thursday, for a third consecutive session, after the White House announced that Donald Trump and North Korean leader, Kim Jong Un, were unable to form a denuclearization agreement.

This news was paired with weak manufacturing data from China, which further underlined the stakes of trade negotiations between Washington and Beijing.

Trump told reporters in Hanoi that North Korean leader, Kim Jong Un, had pushed for a complete end to US sanctions on Pyongyang, but would not agree to levels of nuclear verification that would warrant such a move by the United States.

Meanwhile, data from China showed manufacturing activity in February to have slipped below the 50 mark, separating growth from contraction for the third consecutive month.

The weakness follows the most recent round of trade talks, to which chief US trade negotiator, Robert Lighthizer, told lawmakers that the issues separating the two countries were “too serious” to be solved only by China purchasing more US-made goods.

These moves in pre-market come after yesterday’s mid-week trading session, where US stocks recorded declines, as geopolitical risk factors between India and Pakistan, paired with downbeat comments from Trump’s top trade adviser prompted caution on Wall Street.

The S&P 500 ended the session down -0.04%, with Healthcare (-0.47%) and Real Estate (-0.28%) shares leading much of the declines.
Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined -0.26%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite edged -0.07% lower into the close.

In today’s data front, investors are likely to price in a first reading of fourth-quarter real GDP will be released at 8:30am EST, which Chicago PMI figures for February expected shortly after at 9:45am EST.

In earnings; PG&E (PCG), J.C. Penney (JCP), Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP), Gap (GPS), Splunk (SPLK), VMware (VMW), Nordstrom (JWN), Marriott International (MAR), Workday (WDAY) and AMC Networks (AMCX) are amongst the major companies expected to report their financial results today.

TODAY’S TOP HEADLINES:

North Korea: Trump, North Korea’s Kim End Nuclear Summit Without Agreement. (The WSJ)
President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un failed to reach an agreement at a second summit aimed at curbing North Korea’s nuclear-weapons program, with Washington saying Pyongyang sought sanctions relief without offering enough in return.

India & Pakistan: Pakistan to Release Pilot, Seeking to Limit Tension With India. (Bloomberg)
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan says he will release a captured Indian Air Force pilot tomorrow as a gesture of peace that could help de-escalate a tense military confrontation between the two nations.

ECONOMIC CALENDAR:
Today’s Economical Announcements

08:30AM – ★☆☆ – Weekly Jobless Claims (Previous: 216,000)
08:30AM – ★★★ – GDP (QoQ) (Q4) (Previous: 3.4%)
08:30AM – ★★☆ – GDP Price Index (QoQ) (Q4) (Previous: 1.5%)
08:30AM – ★☆☆ – Real Consumer Spending (Q4) (Previous: 4.0%)
08:50AM – ★★☆ – FOMC Member Bostic Speaks
09:45AM – ★★☆ – Chicago PMI (Feb) (Previous: 56.7)

STOCKS IN THE SPOTLIGHT:
Pre-Market Movers & News Related Stocks

J.C. Penney (JCP): [EARNINGS] Earned an adjusted 18 cents per share for the fourth quarter, 8 cents a share above estimates. Revenue beat forecasts.

Box (BOX): [EARNINGS] Reported adjusted quarterly profit of 6 cents per share, beating the consensus estimate of 2 cents a share. Revenue missed forecasts.

Fitbit (FIT): [EARNINGS] Earned 14 cents per share for the fourth quarter, double what Wall Street was expecting. Revenue beat estimates, however revenue and profit guidance for the current quarter is weaker than expected.

Horizon Pharma (HZNP): [NEWS] Announced positive results from a late-stage trial for a drug designed to treat active thyroid-eye disease, with nearly 83 percent of patients showing improvement compared to under 10 percent for those treated with a placebo.

HP Inc. (HPQ): [EARNINGS] Earned an adjusted 52 cents per share for its latest quarter, matching Wall Street forecasts. Revenue missed estimates, however, amid weakness in printer supply sales.

Sotheby’s (BID): [EARNINGS] Earned $1.72 per share for the fourth quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.48 a share. Revenue beat forecasts.

Celgene (CELG): [NEWS] Celgene shares are under pressure after major Bristol-Myers Squibb shareholder Wellington Management said it would not support the acquisition. Wellington said it thinks Bristol-Myers shareholders are accepting too much risk and that Celgene shareholders are getting the drug maker’s shares at well below implied asset value.

Booking Holdings (BKNG): [EARNINGS] Earned $22.49 per share for its latest quarter, compared to a consensus estimate of $19.42 a share. Revenue missed estimates, and its current-quarter guidance was below consensus, as well.

Square (SQ): [EARNINGS] Beat estimates by a penny a share, with adjusted quarterly earnings of 14 cents per share. Revenue beat forecasts, however Square’s current-quarter outlook is below some analysts’ forecasts.

Party City (PRTY): [EARNINGS] Earned $1.02 per share for the fourth quarter, 7 cents a share below estimates. Revenue below forecasts.

SeaWorld Entertainment (SEAS): [EARNINGS] Lost 13 cents per share for its latest quarter, a penny a share smaller than Wall Street was anticipating. Revenue beat estimates.

L Brands (LB): [EARNINGS] Came in 7 cents a share above estimates, with adjusted quarterly profit of $2.14 per share. Revenue below forecasts.

Western Union (WU): [NEWS] Western Union announced the sale of its Speedpay bill paying business to ACI Worldwide for $750 million in cash. Western Union also announced a $1 billion share buyback program.

Tesla (TSLA): [REVIEW] Tesla was designated as a “Fresh Pick” at Baird, which also reiterated an “outperform” rating. Baird said pessimism on Model 3 demand is overblown, and that weak first-quarter delivery expectations are already priced into the stock.

KKR (KKR): [NEWS] The private-equity firm and China’s Tencent are separately exploring bids for a stake in Vivendi’s Universal Music division, according to Reuters.

Apple (AAPL): [NEWS] Apple will lay off 190 workers at its self-driving car program, according to a filing with state regulators in California.

Southwest Airlines (LUV): [NEWS] Southwest won Federal Aviation Administration approval to fly to Hawaii from California, a route that is considered an important part of its growth plans.

BlackBerry (BBY): [NEWS] BlackBerry filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Twitter (TWTR), accusing Twitter of illegally using mobile messaging technology developed by BlackBerry.

MOMENTUM STOCKS:

GAINERS: SE, TNDM, IONS, BBY, CLVS, ACAD, SBGI, ETSY, FTCH
LOSERS: MYL, WTW, ALDR, GNL, UNH, KHC

TODAY’S IPOs:

DiamondPeak Holdings (DPHC.U) (Price: 10) (Shares: 25M)
Kaleido Biosciences (KLDO) (Price: 15) (Shares: 5M)
Tortoise Acquisition (SHLL.U) (Price: 10) (Shares: 22.5M)