US STOCKS-Wall Street set to open flat after mixed signals on trade

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* U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods could be delayed - SCMP
* TD Ameritrade surges as Schwab in talks to buy company -
CNBC
* Tiffany gains as LVMH raises bid, gets access to books
* Futures unchanged: Dow 0.03%, S&P 500 0.04%, Nasdaq 0.01%

(Adds comment, updates market action)
By Shreyashi Sanyal and Manas Mishra
Nov 21 (Reuters) - The three major U.S. indexes were set to
open flat on Thursday after mixed signals on trade and a row
between Washington and Beijing over the Hong Kong protests cast
doubts on the timing of a deal to end the prolonged tariff
dispute.
U.S. stock index futures erased losses after a report that
the United States could delay tariffs on Chinese imports even if
a deal was not reached by Dec. 15, when tariffs kick in on goods
including items such as electronics and Christmas decorations.
(https:// "This just shows that the trade deal is not dead and that we
will get some sort of an extended truce, which is a positive,"
said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Spartan Capital
Securities in New York.
"Investors are looking for a 'phase one' deal and the news
right now points to that."
Chipmakers with a large revenue exposure to China, including
Intel Corp INTC.O , were largely flat in premarket trade.
Wall Street's moves this year have been largely dictated by
headlines on trade, with expectations building in recent weeks
of at least a partial agreement between the world's top two
economies.
However, all three major indexes ended the last session in
the red after a record run this month on a report that the deal
could be delayed to next year. Political tensions between the
two sides after a U.S. bill supporting Hong Kong protests have
also dulled the mood. At 9:07 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis 1YMcv1 were up 9 points, or
0.03%. S&P 500 e-minis EScv1 were up 1.25 points, or 0.04% and
Nasdaq 100 e-minis NQcv1 were up 0.5 points, or 0.01%.
Apple Inc AAPL.O edged up 0.6%, as U.S. President Donald
Trump said he was considering whether to exempt the iPhone maker
from tariffs on imports from China. Macy's Inc M.N slipped 4.4% after the department store
operator cut its full-year profit forecast blaming falling
tourist numbers and weak mall traffic. With the third-quarter earnings season drawing to a close,
focus is now shifting to M&A activity in corporate America.
Shares in TD Ameritrade Holding Corp AMTD.O jumped 24%
after CNBC reported bigger rival Charles Schwab Corp SCHW.N
was in talks to buy the discount brokerage. Schwab's shares
gained 11%. Tiffany & Co TIF.N gained 3.3% as Reuters reported LVMH
LVMH.PA persuaded the jewelry chain to allow it to access its
books after the French luxury group raised its bid to about $16
billion.
Applied Materials Inc AMAT.O slipped 3% after UBS
downgraded shares of the chip gear maker to "sell".