Stocks cautious as trade and North Korea tensions weigh on markets

Late on Tuesday, North Korea abruptly called off talks with South Korea, raising concerns about a U.S.-North Korean summit.

Dow Jones futures were lower by 0.04%. The S&P 500 was down 0.03% and the Nasdaq Composite was off 0.02%.

North Korea has canceled a high-level meeting with South Korea on Wednesday over U.S.-South Korean military drills and says it has no interest in the summit with Trump if it's going to be a "one-sided" affair where it's pressured to give up its nukes, according to the Associated Press..

U.S. stocks fell on Tuesday, ending the Dow’s eight-day winning streak as a mixed earnings report from Home Depot and rising Treasury yields weighed on the market.

The benchmark Treasury yield climbed above 3% on Tuesday to hit its highest mark in seven years, potentially raising borrowing costs for consumers and businesses.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 193 points, or 0.78%, to 24,706.41, returning to negative territory for the year. The S&P 500 fell 18.68 points to 2,711.45. The Nasdaq Composite was down 59.69 points, or 0.81%, at 7,351.63.

Stock Table

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
I:DJI DOW JONES AVERAGES 38085.8 -375.12 -0.98%
SP500 S&P 500 5048.42 -23.21 -0.46%
I:COMP NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX 15611.759799 -100.99 -0.64%

Home Depot dragged the 30-member Dow lower after the home-improvement retailer reported weaker first-quarter sales than expected. The company's earnings, however, topped estimates. Shares fell 1.6%.

Investors also digested the latest retail sales, which rose for their second-straight month in April.

Another major retailer, Macy’s will report quarterly earnings before the start of trading.

The headline economic report will be monthly housing starts and also building permits which are an indication of future activity.

Asian stock markets dipped on Wednesday on the U.S. – North Korea concerns.

Japan's Nikkei ended the day 0.4% lower.

Shanghai Composite Index closed down 0.7%.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index finished the session off 0.1%.

In Europe, London’s FTSE was up 0.15%, Germany’s DAX was higher by 0.11% and France’s CAC added 0.05%.

FOX Business’ Leia Klingel and Matthew Rocco contributed to this article.