US STOCKS-Wall Street set to open lower on fresh trade fears

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* Qualcomm plunges after U.S. judge rules against co's
practices
* Lowe's, Nordstrom fall after disappointing FY forecasts
* Fed's minutes from April meeting due at 2:00 pm ET
* Futures off: Dow 0.37%, S&P 0.43%, Nasdaq 0.67%

(Adds comment, updates prices)
By Shreyashi Sanyal
May 22 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks were on track to open lower
on Wednesday, as fears resurfaced of a possible escalation in
the trade war between the United States and China following
reports that Washington could impose sanctions on another
Chinese company.
The reports come after Washington's decision to temporarily
ease curbs on Huawei Technologies HWT.UL allayed investors
concerns on Tuesday over a hit to the global technology sector
from the Trump administration's decision last week to add the
Chinese telecoms equipment maker to a trade blacklist.
However, sentiment soured on reports of similar restrictions
on Chinese video surveillance firm Hikvision. "What investors are looking at is the fact that this could
be another retaliation," said Kim Forrest, chief investment
officer at Bokeh Capital Partners in Pittsburgh. "The
negotiations have been more of a tit for tat than actual
conversation."
The back-and-forth between the United States and China has
kept investors on edge and has knocked the benchmark S&P 500
index .SPX 3% off its all-time high hit on May 1.
Markets also waited for minutes from the Federal Reserve's
two-day policy meeting in late April when it held interest rates
steady. The minutes are due at 2 p.m. ET (1800 GMT).
Fed's St. Louis chief James Bullard, a voter in the
rate-setting committee this year, said on Wednesday further
weakness in inflation could prompt the central bank to cut
rates, even if economic growth maintains its momentum.
At 8:41 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis 1YMc1 were down 95 points, or
0.37%. S&P 500 e-minis ESc1 were down 12.25 points, or 0.43%,
and Nasdaq 100 e-minis NQc1 were down 49.75 points, or 0.67%.
Among stocks, Qualcomm Inc QCOM.O slumped 12.2% premarket
after a federal judge ruled that the chipmaker unlawfully
suppressed competition in the market for cellphone chips and
used its dominant position to exact excessive licensing fees.
Retailers wrapped up the first-quarter earnings season on a
low note, with Lowe's Cos Inc LOW.N falling 9.1% after the
home improvement chain cut its full-year profit forecast.

Nordstrom Inc JWN.N declined 10.1% after the department
store operator reduced its forecast for full-year sales and
profit, a day after disappointing earnings from rivals Kohl's
Corp KSS.N and J.C. Penney Co Inc JCP.N . Among the bright spots was retailer Target Corp TGT.N ,
which jumped 7% after its quarterly same-store sales and profit
beat Wall Street estimates.