New York--The prospect of a Greek exit from the eurozone hung over equity markets this week, blunting positive economic news and ultimately leading stocks lower.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 68.93 points (0.38 percent) in the week to 17,947.02.
The broad-based S&P 500 lost 8.38 (0.40 percent) at 2,101.61, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 36.49 (0.71 percent) to 5,080.51.
US stocks rose early in the week, with the Nasdaq hitting records two straight days on an apparent breakthrough in the marathon Greek talks, with the debt-wracked country signalling important concessions on pensions and some other matters.
But the tide turned midweek, as Greece and creditors drifted further apart and the rhetoric on both sides intensified.
"Stocks moved hand and glove with our impression of the success and failure of the Greece talks," said Art Hogan, chief market strategist of Wunderlich Securities.
By Friday, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras was speaking of the latest EU demands as "ultimatums and blackmail," raising the odds of a messy Greek debt default at the end of the month.
Still, many investors continued to believe a deal will be reached over the weekend, said Chris Low, chief economist of FTN Financial.
"But it will be hard," Low predicted. "Investors should be wary."
AFP
