US stocks open lower as airline shares tumble

Wall Street stocks tumbled in early trading Monday, with airline shares taking a major hit after Warren Buffett said he liquidated his holdings in major US carriers.

About 15 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average stood at 23 383.10, down 1.4%.

The broad-based S&P 500 dropped 1.0 percent to 2 801.24, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index shed 0.6 percent to 8 558.01.

Buffett said over the weekend he had sold large equity stakes American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines and United Airlines, commenting, "The airlines business, I think, changed in a very major way."

Shares of the four companies were down between 6 and 10%.

The move added to worries of a slow US economic rebound following coronavirus shutdowns that have devastated tourism and several other sectors.

Analysts said investor sentiment has also been pressured by revived US-China trade worries amid a squabble over the origins of the coronavirus.

This week's economic calendar includes the closely-watched April jobs report, as well as earnings reports from General Motors, Disney and others.