US markets a touch weaker albeit trading volumes were once again lighter than normal (indeed, it was the third lowest volume trading of 2018 to date) ahead of the Memorial Day holiday long weekend - Dow down -59-points or -0.24%, with Chevron Corp (down -3.49%) and Exxon Mobil Corp (-1.9%) alone shaving a combined -36-points off the index. The broader S&P500 fell -0.24%, with the Energy sector (down -2.6%) at the forefront of the declines for a second consecutive session. Investors also continued to monitor geopolitical developments after President Trump abruptly cancelled a planned 12 June summit with North Korea last Thursday (24 May). “We express our willingness to sit down face-to-face with the US and resolve issues anytime and in any format,” said Kim Kye Gwan, a senior North Korea foreign ministry official, in a statement published by the North’s official state media. The same official had harsher words for the US. administration only a week earlier. President Trump then took to Twitter overnight to announce a that a US team had arrived in North Korea to make arrangements for the Summit between Kim Jong Un and himself. The technology-centric NASDAQ +0.13%. For the week, the Dow rose +0.2%, S&P500 +0.3, Nasdaq +1.1%
