US

Greece’s Economic Unrest Sends U.S. Stocks Plummeting

NEW YORK (The Blaze/AP) — Stocks plunged Wednesday as unrest in Greece threatened to further destabilize global financial markets. Major indexes had their biggest drop since June 1. Below, see a Yahoo! Finance chart of the day’s Dow Jones activity:

Greeces Economic Unrest Sends U.S. Stocks Plummeting

Investors piled into lower-risk assets like the dollar and U.S. government bonds. Both rose sharply.

If Greece defaults on its debt it could cause investors to dump the bonds of other weak European countries like Portugal, Spain and Ireland, raising borrowing costs for those countries. It could also cause the dollar to further strengthen against the euro, which would hurt U.S. exporters.

June is shaping up to be the worst month for the stock market since May 2010. Stocks have only risen on three days so far this month and have fallen for the other 11. The Dow Jones industrial average and the Standard & Poor’s 500 index are now 7.3 percent below their recent highs reached in late April.

“It’s sell and ask questions later,” said Steven Goldman, chief market strategist at Weeden & Co. in Greenwich, Conn.

A report on manufacturing in the New York area also came in far below forecasts. That reignited fears that factory production, one of the few bright spots in the U.S. economy, may be weaker than many economists had believed.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 177 points, or 1.5 percent, to 11,899, giving up its 123-point gain from Tuesday. The Dow has only had three days of gains in June.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell 22, or 1.7 percent, to 1,266. The Nasdaq composite fell 41, or 1.6 percent, to 2,637.

The technology-heavy Nasdaq index is now down 0.6 percent for the year. The S&P 500 is up less than 1 percent, while the Dow is up about 3 percent.

The euro slid more than 1 percent against the dollar as the worsening Greek debt crisis undermined confidence in Europe’s shared currency. U.S. government bond prices climbed as investors sought out safer assets.

Earlier today, The Blaze reported that thousands of people gathered on the streets of Athens to protest government cutbacks required to avoid a default on the government’s debt. Demonstrators hurled rocks at riot police, who responded with tear gas. Greece’s prime minister said he would reshuffle his Cabinet and seek a vote of confidence after coalition talks with opposition parties failed.

In the latest sign of how Greece’s problems could affect other countries, credit ratings agency Moody‘s said it may downgrade its ratings of France’s three largest banks because of their exposure to Greek debt.

Worries about Greece have contributed to a drop in U.S. stocks since late April. If Greece defaults on its debt, it would cause borrowing costs for other debt-ridden European countries like Spain and Portugal to soar as investors shun their debt. That could slow economic growth across the continent and throughout the rest of the world.

A Greek default would further weaken the euro and that could also put pressure on U.S. companies that do much of their business overseas. U.S. corporations have benefited from a weak dollar, which has made their exports more competitive in global markets.

Greece’s fiscal problems appeared to be solved a year ago with a package of emergency loans, but it became clear this spring that the country would need more help from its European neighbors to avoid a default. On Monday, Standard & Poor‘s slashed Greece’s creditworthiness to the bottom of the 131 countries that have ratings.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, fell to 2.97 percent from 3.10 percent late Tuesday. That signaled a greater demand for low-risk investments. The euro weakened to $1.42 against the dollar from $1.44 late Tuesday, the weakest level for the European currency since May 30.

Oil fell to $95.36 a barrel from $99.37 Tuesday. Oil and other commodities are priced in dollars. So a stronger dollar makes them more expensive for buyers who use other currencies. The drop in oil prices pushed energy stocks down even more than the overall market. Energy stocks fell 2.4 percent, the most of the 10 company groups that make up the S&P 500.

The June Empire State Manufacturing Survey came in well below forecasts. The survey from the New York Federal Reserve found that conditions for New York manufacturers are weakening and new orders are falling. A measure of optimism among factory owners in the state fell to its lowest level since early 2009.

Analysts said investors should expect stock trading to be volatile as uncertainty about the economy persists. The housing market remains weak and the jobs market is sluggish. Questions loom about whether lawmakers will support raising the nation’s borrowing limit by an Aug. 2 deadline. The Federal Reserve’s $600 billion bond-buying program is also winding down at the end of June. The program was designed to keep interest rates low to encourage borrowing.

“The markets are nervous, investors are nervous, and so we expect volatility,” said Oliver Pursche, president of Gary Goldberg Financial Services.

The Dow is down 5 percent this month, while the S&P and Nasdaq are both down 6 percent.

Pandora Media Inc. jumped 14 percent to $20.21 on its first day of trading. The Internet radio company priced its initial public offering at $16 a share, the high end of its range, reflecting hot demand for online companies. Professional networking site LinkedIn soared on its first day of trading last month, but has since fallen 19 percent.

Owens-Illinois Inc. fell 11 percent after the glass container company cut its second-quarter earnings outlook because it is facing higher manufacturing and delivery costs.

Comments (38)

  • hempstead1944
    Posted on June 16, 2011 at 8:00am

    Take a good look America because this show is coming to a theater near you….sooner than you think, sponsored by your elected politicians.

    Report Post »  
  • GadsdenPatriot
    Posted on June 16, 2011 at 4:39am

    …a crystal ball that shows the future of obamanomics.

    Report Post » GadsdenPatriot  
  • sb36695
    Posted on June 15, 2011 at 9:10pm

    LOOKING_BOTH_WAYS

    A weak dollar causes prices to increase. Get ready for hyperinflation if the fed doesn’t stop printing. We may get it anyway.

    Report Post »  
    • psst
      Posted on June 16, 2011 at 9:22am

      Um! We may have to fill the trunks of cars or the beds of our pickup trucks w/ worthless $ bills to buy a loaf of bread at the SM or the neighbourhood stores. For the corner grocs. Make that 2 car trunks and PU truck beds full of $ bills.
      Who know. We may yet be a desert country as the feds chops down all the trees to make worthless paper “munny”

      Report Post »  
  • chicago76
    Posted on June 15, 2011 at 8:14pm

    The Europeans are more than willing to bankrupt the world to maintain their standard of living, so are the unions here and government workers here. The real evil is yet to come. The poor nations are being crushed under our debt.

    Report Post »  
  • chicago76
    Posted on June 15, 2011 at 8:10pm

    Greece and other European countries are trying to keep their unreasonable benefits by stealing from the rest of the countries of the world through the IMF by printing money that they do not have to pay for goods and services they cannot afford. The Greeks understand this better than anyone. The want the IMF gravy train to keep rolling into their station. The other European nations are held hostage because if the Greeks don‘t get theirs then the other nations of Europe won’t have justification to get theirs. In other words, if Greece falls then the whole house of cards comes down. The IMF is more than willing to steal from the poor nations of the world with no monetary power to feed the insatiable appetite of the European nations so long as it can protect its power.

    Report Post »  
  • starman70
    Posted on June 15, 2011 at 7:12pm

    AMERICA!!! IT IS COMING HERE!!!!

    You saw just a smattering of it in Wisconsin. Just wait till California, New York, Michigan and a host of other states can no longer pay their “Entitlements”. Programs instituted by greedy workers and Union Bosses.

    How STUPID can it be to riot? Is it not better to continue to have a job rather than be totally unemployed? Come on government workers and also those in the private sector, WAKE UP! The gravy train is grinding to a halt and YOU may be stranded in the desert before reaching you station.

    America is on the verge of becoming another Greece, Spain, Italy, Portugal or any of the other FAILED sociaist economies in Europe. We still have time to turn it around but that time is short. I

    Report Post »  
  • mossbrain
    Posted on June 15, 2011 at 6:51pm

    Usually when a general public site like this starts talking about the market going down, it goes back up again. The insiders were already out.

    Report Post » mossbrain  
  • Alan
    Posted on June 15, 2011 at 6:35pm

    How do they (whover they are) determine that Greece is to blame for the Stock Market fall?

    Report Post »  
  • bitter clinger
    Posted on June 15, 2011 at 6:14pm

    We are going down a slippery slope following the path of greece.

    Report Post » bitter clinger  
  • PZDOFF
    Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:50pm

    and yes America, Greece is coming to a corner near you and not in the form of Windex ! Keep supporting the antics of big labor, keep the entitlement mentality in 5th, better, 6th gear, keep making government bigger and bigger, keep spending our grandchildrens childrens childrens into a debt so deep…well, it won’t actually get that far because we too…YES America will be forced to default on our debt….JUST LIKE GREECE ! Think of the attribution in following a country that gave us Aristotle, the Parthenon…‘and all them other high faluting Greeks’.

    Report Post »  
    • jacobstroubles
      Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:59pm

      Roger that!
      We’re probaby just few weeks away.
      something fairly signficant will happen – probably a catstrophic seismic event.
      On another note…anybody notice the complete lack of “campaigning” being done by bho?
      Ohhhhh gee… that is such a shocker..and now he’s mouthing, that he and his family is OK with him being a ONE TERM PRES… doesnt this strike anybody as bizzare? It should!

      Let’s see… humm…maybe he does not think there’s the need to put any effort into campaigning for somehting that is never going to happen…Oh…say like a traditional presidential election process.. and maybe he’ll be awarded a position by default…

      just saying…
      IF YOU LISTEN TO WHAT THEY SAY THEY ALWAYS TELL YOU EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW!

      Take the damned wax out of your ears and LISTEN!

      Report Post »  
  • SpankDaMonkey
    Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:41pm

    .
    It’s amazing the effect that Porn and Cheetoes have on the human brain.

    Report Post » SpankDaMonkey  
  • Gonzo
    Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:25pm

    Wait until the effects of QE2 end. The market is going to sink faster than the Bismarck.

    Report Post » Gonzo  
  • cloudsofwar
    Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:22pm

    the dow only fell 177 points today? thats not bad considering. i don‘t think it’s greece i think it’s BO policies. who feels comfortable with this Marxist in the white house. as for investing over seas? you got to be crazy, they can fall apart at anytime. so much for the eureo, invester beware. the markets will drop even futher before this Marxist in chief is finished. fin

    Report Post »  
  • RepubliCorp
    Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:17pm

    The stock market is like playing cards when you know the dealer is crooked.

    Report Post » RepubliCorp  
  • I.Gaspar
    Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:05pm

    He splained everything in Puerto Rico…he’s doing everything he can to improve (and transform) the U.S.
    No te preocupes….

    Report Post »  
  • Psychosis
    Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:03pm

    hope and change

    so, all that u.s. tax payers money used to bail out the banks in these foreign countries, without the publics knowledge, is also a waste of money

    who would have thunk

    Report Post » Psychosis  
  • The_Almighty_Creestof
    Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:02pm

    How about the president of every country getting together with exact numbers on what they owe to everyone else, and what is owed to them by others.

    Maybe, just maybe…if everyone forgives each others debts…each country will be OK without having to pay the debts/interest and not getting re-paid by other countries.

    Report Post »  
    • Ghastlyone
      Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:21pm

      Uh yeah….economics doesn’t work that way.

      Debt just doesn’t “disappear” because another president/prime minister of a foreign country says you don’t have to repay anything.

      Report Post »  
    • The_Almighty_Creestof
      Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:49pm

      If Joe owes me $100.00 and I owe Bill $200.00 and Bill owes Joe $50.00

      I forgive Joe‘s debt and he forgives Bill’s debt…Joe is up $50.00…he pays that in my name to Bill and now Joe is even with everyone. Bill has been paid $50.00 of my debt by Joe, and had his own $50.00 debt to Joe forgiven. Bill is now out $100.00 which I pay him. I take a bit of a loss…but the loss is in money from others I might never collect anyway…and I wind up only having to pay half of what I currently owe in new money.

      Report Post »  
    • 338lapua
      Posted on June 15, 2011 at 7:38pm

      KOOMBYAAAHHH MY LORD KOOMBYAHHH
      You have dropped way too much acid in your little brain.
      Research economics and you will realize A) you are wrong B) how wrong you are C) why you are wrong.

      I cannot fix you, but I can point you in the right direction. The rest is up to you.

      Report Post »  
  • cessna152
    Posted on June 15, 2011 at 4:58pm

    If they read this Socialist site they would have known days or weeks in advance:

    http://www.socialistworld.net/doc/5133

    Report Post » cessna152  
    • SavingtheRepublic.com
      Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:03pm

      ^____^____^
      I saw something the other day I think on business insider saying we arent greece…. yea okay! Correct me if Im wrong but hasnt Europe always been ahead of us?

      Get your houses in order as its not a question of IF we will become Greece but WHEN!

      Report Post » SavingtheRepublic.com  
    • LOOKING_BOTH_WAYS
      Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:05pm

      the Dollar went up and Oil went down… I’m so confused

      Report Post »  
    • Eric_The_Red_State
      Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:16pm

      Impeach Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke
      He is an idiot of the FIRST DEGREE

      Report Post » Eric_The_Red_State  
    • Psychosis
      Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:20pm

      @ looking but sees nothing

      the dollar went up because the european bond market tanked with the financial news forcing investors to go into u.s. bonds thus strengthening the dollar which since oil is tied to the dollar, forced the cost of oil downward in reverse though, qe 1 qe2 and soon qe3 has and will soon again force the value of the dollar lower

      this is but a small blip in the price of oil as qe2 ends and qe3 starts up, oil will rise quickly in july and august

      Report Post » Psychosis  
    • Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
      Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:26pm

      @Saving the Republic:

      Indeed while we are not greece; the fact is the worlds markets are so interconnected that what happens in one part of the world, while not harmful say to the majority of our nation, makes for a easy panic across many markets and becomes a self fulfilling prophecy of downturn and losses; thus the fact even further loss becomes predicted, more people panic sell and again the self fulfillment has been achieved while the real villans like Soros gain monster profits and control.

      Report Post » Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}  
    • Eric_The_Red_State
      Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:42pm

      On Monday, Standard & Poor‘s slashed Greece’s creditworthiness to the bottom of the 131 countries that have ratings

      And,,,,, right after that – US loaned them money.

      Need any more convincing that we are being governed by people out to destroy America?

      Report Post » Eric_The_Red_State  
    • Exrepublisheep
      Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:48pm

      as long as its so simple to blame others and to direct hate in 1 direction, billionaires will always win. The right has a guaranteed market for profit in the hate of anything that shines a light on it. COMMUNISTS! You’ve been shouting that since Kennedy and its never true. SPOOKY DUDE! When the one making the most money, by far, is Murdoch. MUSLIMS! There is no such thing as a muslim pretending to be a christian, that would insult mohammed and islam. Lowlife repubes just hate and hate and hate. 2012 may thin the ranks of the party of hate as many of you jump off bridges. Buh bye.

      Report Post » Exrepublisheep  
    • LOOKING_BOTH_WAYS
      Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:50pm

      @Psychosis…don’t know why you use that name / you appear not to be
      ~~~~~~~~
      I see plenty but i do have my limitations

      btw.. i was being facetious

      Report Post »  
    • Marylou7
      Posted on June 15, 2011 at 5:52pm

      The Bible says to start with one’s self, therefore I am getting my life right with God and my house in order.

      Report Post » Marylou7  
    • SpankDaMonkey
      Posted on June 15, 2011 at 6:01pm

      .

      I know I’ve said it before but if the shoe fits. This is like watching a Monkey Hump a Football, they, along with the rest of us are so screwed.

      Report Post » SpankDaMonkey  
    • chiefparker
      Posted on June 15, 2011 at 6:32pm

      Exrepublisheep—Don’t forget to take your medicine, your babbling again.

      Report Post » chiefparker  
    • silentwatcher
      Posted on June 15, 2011 at 6:44pm

      EVERYTHING these days is sending the stocks plummeting. Obama slices his golf ball the stocks fall.

      Report Post »  
    • psst
      Posted on June 16, 2011 at 9:12am

      @Psychosis.who said:”this is but a small blip in the price of oil as qe2 ends and qe3 starts up, oil will rise quickly in july and august”
      I’m not taking issue w/ your remark, because I’m no expert, on this subject,just passing on what I heard.
      I listen to Varney this am on Fox. He predicted that oil/gas prices will continue to decline because w/ less driving, there is a glut of oil.
      Like you, I think the falling prices are just temporary.As long as we continue to print $, it’s value will decline.(evn more than it has)
      And as intelligent people knows, it is goods that represents real wealth. Gold,Silver,Diamonds Oil,lands, products in general. $ bills w/o being backed by gold is just a piece of paper.
      As the value of the $ drops, it’s only good bidniz sense for producers to demand more of them for payment of their products that represent real value..
      If I produced widgets, and the $‘s I’m being paid for my widgets keeps dropping,in value, it’s only fair that I demand more of those declining in value $’s.
      But lemmings would scream” I’m “ripping them off for asking for more of those declining $’s to buy my widgets.
      The socialist/marxist government and the MSM (one and the same) would then blame me for being an evil capitalist rich person .And their dumbded-down lemmings would believe them
      Lemmings couldn’t care less my widget plant creates real jobs that produce taxes to feed them
      Most of them thinks the gov. creates wealth.
      US is goners.

      Report Post »  
    • militiaman
      Posted on June 16, 2011 at 9:25am

      cessna152
      Posted on June 15, 2011 at 4:58pm
      “If they read this Socialist site they would have known days or weeks in advance:

      http://www.socialistworld.net/doc/5133”

      That’s a good link. Gerald Celente also forecast this situation, along with many others over a year ago.

      Here‘s his latest on today’s picture: http://www.rense.com/general94/collapse.htm

      Report Post »  

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