NEW YORK (Reuters) - The potential for an intensifying trade dispute to undercut the U.S. stock market could become clearer next week when a host of multinational companies reports quarterly results that may provide a glimpse into the impact of those global tensions.
A broad trade war scaled up a list of worries for Corporate America and equity investors after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed tariffs last month on imports of steel and aluminum. His comments and posts on Twitter about unfair behavior by U.S. trade partners have rattled the market, which has pulled back from record highs early this year.
China has responded with tariffs of its own, leading to fears about a full-blown trade war and injecting fresh volatility into a stock market that has been more jittery over the past two months.
Of 25 U.S. companies seen by Credit Suisse as most exposed to a trade war, more than half will report their results in the coming week. They include Halliburton Co (HAL.N) on Monday, 3M Co (MMM.N) and Texas Instruments Inc (TXN.O) on Tuesday, Boeing Co (BA.N) on Wednesday, Intel Corp (INTC.O) on Thursday and Chevron Corp (CVX.N) on Friday.
Overall, more than 180 companies in the benchmark S&P 500 .SPX index are due to report results next week. Some companies have already weighed in on trade tensions in the early stages of earnings season.
“Management has to walk a fine line between flapping their arms and lobbying against tariffs, and presenting themselves as vulnerable to tariffs,” said Jack Ablin, chief investment
