The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:.DJI) closed lower by 0.96% at 11,934.58 on Friday.
However three days of losses could be snapped today should the Dow Jones follow through on the positive start suggested by futures trading. S&P 500 futures rose 2.9 points and were above fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures added 24 points and Nasdaq 100 futures put on 7.75 points. The key worry for global markets at this stage remains that of Greece. The Greek parliament will begin to debate a deeply unpopular austerity plan that the European Union and International Monetary Fund say needs to be approved in exchange for the fifth tranche of Greece's 110 billion euros bailout program. A Greek minister warned of "catastrophe" if the measure was blocked. *Traders see a Greek default as unlikely, and the S&P holding its 200-day moving average was viewed as a sign of technical support following two months of heavy selling that brought the index down about 7 percent*. Companies scheduled to report quarterly results on Monday include Nike Inc. Tobacco giant Philip Morris International Inc threatened to sue the Australian government over its plan to be the first country to introduce plain, brand-less packaging for cigarettes. Citigroup Inc told government officials that the 3,400 customers whose credit card information was hacked suffered about $2.7 million in losses, the Wall Street Journal reported. Small-cap tech stocks could be the new value names following the annual adjustment to the Russell indexes Friday.
