Wall Street falls as trade hopes wane

Stocks on Wall Street dropped for a third straight day Tuesday on trade fears. President Donald Trump dented hopes of a trade deal with China BEFORE THE 2020 election, and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said tariffs will be imposed this month as scheduled. All sectors except utilities fell, dragging the Dow down 280 points, off 1%.

Datatrek Research co-founder Nick Colas:

SOUNDBITE: DATATREK RESEARCH CO-FOUNDER NICK COLAS (ENGLISH) SAYING:

"It is an excuse for a pullback. We've had a very strong rally, obviously, in November. And I think the Administration feels to some degree they're playing with house money. We've had a great year in the stock market. S&P's up over 25%. And so if you lose a percent or two because of some renegotiation or negotiating posture, that's OK."

Trade-sensitive stocks tumbled on Trump's comments. Among them: Nvidia, Advanced Micro Devices, Apple, and Boeing.

PG&E shares jumped even though California regulators concluded in a probe that the bankrupty utility had failed to inspect transmission lines before a faulty wire sparked the deadliest wildfire in the state's history.

Audentes Therapeutics shares more than doubled. Japan's Astellas Pharma is buying the drugmaker for about $3 billion.