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^FINANCIAL MARKETS
Stocks skid
NEW YORK (AP) _ Stocks skidded in afternoon trading after the U.S. blacklisted a group of Chinese companies as it prepares for another round of trade negotiations. The move casts more doubt over any potential resolution to the ongoing trade war.
Technology stocks were among the biggest losers as chipmakers fell. Medical device makers, including Boston Scientific, knocked down health care stocks.
Falling bond yields weighed on banks. Utilities and real estate companies held up better than the rest of the market.
European markets fell broadly. The British government warned that chances of a separation deal with the European Union are fading. The U.K. is on track to leave the 19-nation block on Oct. 31 but doesn't yet have an agreement on trade in place.
^PRODUCER-PRICES
US producer prices drop 0.3% in September
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. producer prices fell in September, another sign that inflation remains tame more than 10 years into America's economic expansion.
The Labor Department says its producer price index, which measures inflation before it reaches consumers, fell 0.3% last month, the first drop since June and the biggest since January. Even core wholesale prices, which exclude volatile food and energy prices, tumbled 0.3%.
Falling prices were widespread, ranging from clothing to machinery.
Over the past year, producer prices have risen a modest 1.4%, and core producer prices are up 2%.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly pressured the Federal Reserve to lower U.S. interest rates, arguing, among other things, that inflation poses no threat even though unemployment is at a 50-year low 3.5%. The Fed has already cut rates twice this year.
^EU-BREXIT
UK to publish no-deal plans as gloom surrounds Brexit talks
LONDON (AP) — The British government says it still hopes to strike a Brexit deal with the European Union, despite mounting gloom on both sides of the Channel about the chances of success.
EU leaders have demanded more "realism" from Britain in response to a Brexit plan proposed by Prime Minister Boris Johnson. The bloc says the proposals don't fulfil the U.K.'s commitment to a frictionless border between Northern Ireland and EU member Ireland.
French President Emmanuel Macron says the EU will assess by Friday whether a deal is possible.
The British government says the U.K. will leave on Oct. 31 with or without a divorce deal, and is taking steps to minimize the pain of a no-deal exit.
It's due to publish more details of planning for a no-deal Brexit on Tuesday.
^HONG-KONG-ECONOMY
Hong Kong leader says economy taking a hit from protests
HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong's embattled leader Carrie Lam says the city's economy is being battered by months of increasingly violent protests.
Lam, the Beijing-backed chief executive of the semi-autonomous region, told reporters Tuesday that tourism arrivals were down by half. She said economic data for the last quarter were also likely to be "very bad."
The city's airport has been periodically besieged by protesters, and some train and subway lines and shopping malls have suffered significant disruptions from the demonstrations.
Protesters are demanding Lam's resignation even after she withdrew legislation that provoked the latest rounds of turmoil.
Many thousands have joined the protests in the former British colony to voice concern over threats to special freedoms promised to Hong Kong's residents when their city was handed to communist-ruled China in 1997.
^BOEING-PLANES
Boeing delivers just 26 planes in September, extending slump
CHICAGO (AP) — Boeing's troubles are deepening as the grounding of the 737 Max jetliner approaches the seven-month mark.
The aircraft maker said Tuesday it delivered just 26 planes in September, down from 87 a year earlier, when it was ramping up Max production.
The Chicago-based company delivered just two 737s last month, compared with 61 a year earlier. The 737 is a longtime airline favorite for short and medium routes.
The Max has been grounded worldwide since mid-March after the second of two crashes that killed a total of 346 people.
Boeing says it's fixing software on the plane that triggered nose-down pitches before both crashes. It hopes to win Federal Aviation Administration approval to return the plane to flying this year. But many analysts and pilot-union leaders think 2020 is more likely.
^JAPAN-NISSAN
Nissan names head of China business to be new CEO
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese automaker Nissan Motor Co. has named the head of its China business, Makoto Uchida, to be its new CEO.
Nissan officials said Uchida, a senior vice president, was chosen for his varied and cosmopolitan experience.
Uchida replaces Hiroto Saikawa, who resigned last month after acknowledging he had received questionable income payments.
Saikawa had succeeded former Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn. Ghosn is awaiting trial in Japan on charges of falsifying documents on deferred compensation and of breach of trust in allegedly diverting Nissan money for personal gain. He denies wrongdoing.
Saikawa had been closely allied with Ghosn, who led Nissan for two decades and made it one of the most successful automakers in the world before his arrest in November 2018.
^TOYS R US-TARGET
Parent of Toys R Us teams up with Target to power online biz
NEW YORK (AP) — The parent company of Toys R Us is turning to a rival to restart its e-commerce business ahead of the holiday shopping season.
Tru Kids Brands is teaming up with discounter Target Corp. to relaunch Toysrus.com, according to a joint release.
The site, which launched Tuesday, features product reviews and directs browsers to a buy button at Target.com to complete the purchase.
The moves come as the first two new Toys R Us stores — one in Houston, the other in Paramus, New Jersey — will open in November as part of a small comeback of the defunct iconic toy chain in the U.S.
Target.com will also power online sales in the new Toys R Us experiential retail stores.
^ALLBIRDS-MORE STORES
Allbirds, a shoe brand born online, to double stores
NEW YORK (AP) — Online shoe brand Allbirds plans to more than double its store count next year, hoping to reach shoppers who want to touch and try on its wool shoes.
The company says it plans to open 20 stores in 2020, bringing its total number of stores to about 35 by the end of the year.
While big box stores are closing locations, online startups like mattress seller Casper and men's clothing brand Untuckit are expanding into brick-and-mortar stores.
Allbirds said it can't ignore shops since most footwear sales are still happening inside stores. Plus, the stores help explain the unusual materials used in its shoes, such as wool, tree fiber and sugar cane.
^DOMINO'S PIZZA-RESULTS
Domino's same-store sales short for 4th consecutive quarter
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Domino's Pizza is reporting a weaker-than-expected third quarter with rising pressure from third-party delivery services like UberEats and DoorDash.
And for the fourth consecutive quarter, same-store sales in the U.S. are falling short of expectations.
Sales at U.S. stores open at least a year rose 2.4%, shy of the 2.7% growth Wall Street had anticipated, according to analysts polled by FactSet.
The world's biggest pizza chain said Tuesday that net income rose 3% to $86.4 million, or $2.05 per share, 2 cents short of Wall Street forecasts. Revenue rose 4% to $820.8 million, also lower than expected.
The company opened 214 stores in the quarter as it continues a rapid expansion it hopes will check competitors and boost speedy deliveries.
It's under pressure from delivery services that offer discounts elsewhere.
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