U.S. stocks closed mostly lower yesterday following a batch of weak earnings reports from high-profile firms such as Walt Disney and Snap.  However, the Nasdaq extended its winning streak to a fifth session as technology shares outperformed the broader market.

China just announced they are slapping additional tariffs of 25 percent on $16 billion worth of U.S. imports from fuel and steel products to autos and medical equipment, the Chinese commerce ministry said, as the world's largest economies escalated their trade dispute.

The CEO of Tesla, Elon Musk, famously tweeted earlier this week that he was considering taking the company private.  Now the Securities and Exchange Commission has made inquiries to Tesla over Elon Musk's going-private tweet, including examining whether the chief executive's statement was factual and why the disclosure was made on Twitter rather than on an official filing.  We are sure to hear more about this in the future.

As we near the end of earnings season, two trends are clear: Profits have gone through the roof, helped by lower corporate income taxes. But sales have also increased remarkably, and that trend started before the tax cuts went into effect.

With Northwest Quadrant Wealth Management, I’m Tyler Simones