In the first day of trading since the Dow Jones industrial average hit its highest level since May 2008, stocks on Monday were set to decline on concerns about Greece -- a shift after markets celebrated strong U.S. economic news late last week.
U.S. index futures were down with about two hours before markets open, suggesting that stocks will fall at the start of trading. Futures for the Dow Jones industrial average were down 33 points or 0.3 per cent. Futures for the broader S&P 500 were down 5 points or 0.4 per cent.
There was little U.S. economic news for investors to digest, following last week's nice dip in weekly initial jobless claims, a better-than-expected gain in payrolls for January and a rise in non-manufacturing activity last month -- all of which helped cement the impression that the economy is in better shape than many observers had believed.
Without any major economic news expected on Monday, though, investors can dwell on the situation in Europe, where the sovereign-debt crisis still has the ability to send worry-waves through the stock market. There, Greek leaders were still trying to hammer out austerity measures needed to receive the next round of bailout funds from the euro zone and stave off outright default on its current debt obligations. However, ongoing political disagreement over private-sector wage cuts and other issues has delayed any deal -- already past initial deadlines -- weighing on stocks.
The U.K.'s FTSE 100 was down 0.3 per cent and Germany's DAX index was down 0.5 per cent in afternoon trading. In Asia, though, Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 1.1 per cent in overnight trading.
Commodities took a step back. Crude oil fell to $96.88 (U.S.) a barrel, down 1 per cent. Gold fell to $1,723 an ounce, down 1 per cent.
