On The Fly: Stocks end week lower as health care bill vote ends up scrapped

Stocks ended the week lower as the negotiations toward a planned House vote on the Republicans' "American Health Care Act" took center stage. Many doubted the bill would gather enough votes to pass and move to the Senate and in the end House Speaker Paul Ryan and President Donald Trump agreed that it was best to pull the bill that was meant to replace the ACA, otherwise known as Obamacare. MACRO NEWS: The House Rules Committee cleared Friday morning the Republican's "American Health Care Act" to repeal and replace Obamacare out of committee by a vote of 9-3, setting up for a final floor vote to pass the bill. However, right before a vote was intended to occur near 3:30 pm ET, Speaker Ryan, at the urging of President Trump, pulled the bill, saying Republicans "came up short" and would now move on with the rest of their "ambitious agenda"... In the U.S., the Chicago National Activity index rose to 0.34 in February. The current account deficit did not widen as expected in the fourth quarter, coming in at $112.4B compared to a deficit of $113.0B in the third quarter. The FHFA home price index was flat in January at 242.6. Existing home sales fell 3.7% to a 5.48M rate in February. Initial jobless claims surged 15,000 to 258,000 last week. New home sales rose 6.1% to a 592,000 rate in February. Durable goods orders rose 1.7% in February. Markit's manufacturing PMI was 53.4, with the services index at 52.9, in the preliminary March readings... In Asia, Japan's exports increased at an annualized 11.3% rate in February, while imports rose 1.2%. The Nikkei Flash Japan manufacturing PMI slowed to 52.6 in March... In Europe, the U.K. said it will formally trigger its exit from the EU on March 29. Triggering Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, the formal procedure for leaving the bloc, will open a two-year timetable for negotiations, with Britain able to leave the EU by 2019. U.K. consumer prices rose 0.7% in February. A Eurozone consumer confidence reading rose by 1.2 points to -5.0 in March. Markit's Eurozone composite PMI climbed to 56.7. COMPANY NEWS: Following media reports earlier in the week that AT&T (T), Verizon (VZ) and Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) have suspended advertising from Alphabet's (GOOGL, GOOG) YouTube and other Google properties over concerns the tech giant isn't doing enough to prevent brands' ads from appearing next to offensive material, PepsiCo (PEP), Wal-Mart (WMT) and Dish (DISH) said they were also suspending spending on all Google advertising except targeted search ads, according to The Wall Street Journal. Additionally, Starbucks (SBUX) and General Motors (GM) are pulling their ads from YouTube, and 21st Century Fox's (FOXA, FOX) FX Networks is suspending all advertising spending on Google, the publication noted, adding that Toyota (TM) and Microsoft (MSFT) are also monitoring the situation. Coca-Cola (KO) and Procter and Gamble (PG) said they were working with Google but declined to say if they were reducing spending, the report pointed out... Apple (AAPL) announced a red version of its iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, with a part of the proceeds going toward a charity that helps combat the AIDS epidemic in Africa. Additionally, the company unveiled a new lower-priced 9.7 inch iPad... Walt Disney's (DIS) "Beauty and the Beast," the latest in a string of live-action remakes of animated classics from the company, topped box offices with a $170M launch in the U.S. alongside $180M from international markets. The company also announced this week that it has extended Robert Iger's contract as Chairman and CEO to July 2, 2019... On Tuesday, bank stocks including JPMorgan (JPM), Wells Fargo (WFC), Goldman Sachs (GS), Citi (C), Bank of America (BAC) had one of their worst days since June as markets worried about the new administration's pro-growth policies and how soon it will be able to deliver on President Trump's promises... General Electric (GE) disclosed that, based on discussions with Nelson Peltz's Trian Fund Management, it has increased its targeted reduction in Industrial structural costs and modified the performance framework for the members of the company's executive management team to reward them based on the new goals... Sears Holdings (SHLD) said that there was "substantial doubt" that it could continue as a going concern, as bricks-and-mortar stores continue to face challenges in an e-commerce world... Ford (F) said its profit will fall in the current quarter compared to the same period of last year due to higher costs, lower volume, and unfavorable foreign exchange movements... President Trump, speaking from the Oval Office, announced on Friday that Charter Communications (CHTR) will invest $25B in the U.S. and hire over 20,000 workers over the next four years. Additionally, the President announced that his administration has approved the Keystone XL pipeline, reversing the previous administration's decision to block the oil project. Trump said that the U.S. Department has signed and issued TransCanada's (TRP) permit, making good on his campaign promise... In M&A news, PPG (PPG) announced that it made an increased offer to acquire AkzoNobel (AKZOY) for EUR90 per ordinary share in cash and stock, or $26.3B, though AkzoNobel has once again rejected the tie-up proposal... Among companies that announced quarterly results this week, FedEx (FDX), Duluth Holdings (DLTH), PVH Corp. (PVH), Five Below (FIVE), and Micron Technology (MU) advanced following their reports, while General Mills (GIS), Canadian Solar (CSIQ), Nike (NKE), Silver Wheaton (SLW), GameStop (GME), and Finish Line (FINL) declined. INDEXES: For the week, the Dow fell 1.5% to 20,596.72, the Nasdaq lost 1.2% to 5,828.74, and the S&P 500 declined 1.4% to 2,343.98.