It was a relatively quiet day for news in the U.S. This allowed traders to refocus their attentions on Europe, which continues to be a huge mess.
First, the scoreboard:
Dow: 12,653.7, -6.7, -0.1%
S&P 500: 1,313.0, -3.3, -0.3%
NASDAQ: 2,811.9, -4.6, -0.2%
And now, the top stories:
- One by one, each of the eurozone debt-laden PIIGS have managed to steal the financial market headlines. The stories of Greece, Italy, and Spain are well-known. But the PIIGS du jour was Portugal. The yield on the Portuguese 10-year note soared north of 17 percent, which had everyone freaking out. Now Here's Who Gets Crushed If Portugal Goes Bust >
- Meanwhile, Greece hasn't exactly escaped the headlines either. Last Friday, reports surfaced that Germany would push Greece to cede control of its budgetary processes. Greece obviously wasn't having any of that.
- Then again, Greece might not have many other options. The country continues to negotiate with its private creditors regarding a potential debt swap deal. According to one recent report, private creditors may have to take up to a 70 percent write down on their Greek debt holdings.
- U.S. economic data painted a mixed picture this morning. Personal income jumped 0.5 percent in December, which was higher than the 0.4 percent increase expected. However, spending was flat; economists were hoping for 0.1 percent. Based on the moves in these two measures, it's probably obvious that the savings rate went up.
- The Dallas Fed Manufacturing Index flew under the radar, but the reading was quite bullish for the region. The general business index jumped to 15.3 from December's reading of -0.3. Economists were only looking for 1.5. Readings on orders and labor were bullish.
- Merger Monday: Switzerland's ABB, an engineering firm, agreed to buy electrical parts maker Thomas & Betts at a 24 percent premium to its recent stock price. This news came as Thomas & Betts reported that quarterly earnings jumped by a better-than-expected 42 percent.
- Don't Miss: Here's What Big Companies Are Telling Us About The World Economy >
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See Also:
- STOCKS SURGE AND THE FED SEES LOW INTEREST RATES FOR YEARS: Here's What You Need To Know
- FINALLY, STOCKS FALL: Here's What You Need To Know
- ECONOMY DISAPPOINTS, EUROPE GETS DOWNGRADED, MARKETS GO NOWHERE: Here's What You Need To Know