Stocks Slugged by Chaos in Athens

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Stocks posted their largest one-day decline of the year Friday as fears of a disorderly Greek default and signs of global economic slowdown dinged sentiment.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was dropped 89.2 points, or 0.7%, to 12,801. The S&P 500 slid 9.3 points, or 0.7%, to 1,343, to snap a five-week rally, and the Nasdaq erased 23.4 points, or 0.8%, at 2,904.

As market uncertainty ticked up Friday, the CBOE Volatility Index rose 12% to 20.78.

In Greece, trade unions have begun a two-day strike protesting the austerity measures required to secure an urgently-needed second, € 130 billion ($172 billion) bailout package from the country's European creditors including the International Monetary Fund.

Although an official statement from Greece yesterday said that leaders backing Greece's coalition government had reached an austerity agreement, eurozone finance ministers shot down the € 3.3 billion package, rejecting it as incomplete. They say they still need to see an additional €325 million ($430 million) in cuts to this year's budget, a passage of those cuts through parliament and a written guarantee that those cuts would be executed after the scheduled April general elections.

Greece's lenders are giving the country until the middle of next week to fulfill these demands -- or face losing the bailout, a chaotic default in March and an exit from the euro.

Greek far-right leader George Karatzaferis said Friday that he will refuse to support the tough measures, decrying the way that Greece's European partners are treating the country as "humiliating." At least four Greek ministers have already resigned in protest over the new austerity package.

"Greeks will almost surely have to vote this weekend on the agreement, enshrining it in law and further ..." says Dan Greenhaus, chief global strategist, BTIG. "Not surprisingly, this is going to be quite difficult, although not impossible."

The International Energy Agency slashed its full-year global oil demand projection for this year for the sixth month in a row citing a "darkening" economic outlook and sparking concerns about global growth. The IEA cut its estimates on global oil demand following a "sharp deterioration" of economic growth forecasts by the International Monetary Fund in January. The Paris-based agency said that global crude consumption will rise by 800,000 barrels a day, or 300,000 less than previously forecast, to 89.9 million barrels a day, as consumption declines in most developed countries this year amid the looming pressure of Europe's sovereign debt crisis. Every 7/10 decline in European economic growth shaves off 3/10 from U.S. growth, according to UBS.

"An uneasy balance characterized oil markets in January, with tensions surrounding Iran counteracting a weaker economic outlook," the IEA said.

China also reported that imports and exports fell more than anticipated in January, marking the first declines in two years. Exports fell 0.5% and imports fell 15.3%.

In the U.S., the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan Survey of Consumers report said that February's preliminary consumer sentiment index came in at 72.5, which was a dip from 75 in the final January report. The latest reading was a disappointment to economists who expected 74.5, according to Thomson Reuters.

In other domestic economic news, the Commerce Department reported that the country's international trade deficit increased to $48.8 billion from a revised $47.06 billion in November, suggesting that the nation's trade deficit still is not under control. The December deficit was the highest since June of last year although it was roughly in line with the $48 billion that economists expected, according to a poll by Thomson Reuters.

"Today is nothing more than a healthy pullback," says James "Rev Shark" DePorre, founder and CEO of Shark Asset Management. "The biggest positive for the bulls is that they have been anticipating weakness for so long, so this isn't exactly a big surprise that catches folks leaning the wrong way."

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London's FTSE finished down 0.74%, and Germany's DAX settled 1.4% lower. In Asia, Japan's Nikkei Average closed down 0.61%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index settled lower by 1.08%.

In corporate news, Toyota Motor (TM) erased 3.1% to $78.39 as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said that federal safety inspectors have begun investigating reports of fires in the driver's side doors of 2007 Toyota Camry sedans and RAV-4 crossover SUVs. This investigation could affect as many as 830,000 vehicles. A recall had not yet been announced.

NYSE Euronext (NYX) said fourth-quarter profit declined as it incurred costs related to the failed merger with Germany's Deutsche Boerse. NYSE Euronext, the operator of the New York Stock Exchange, earned $110 million, or 43 cents a share, in the fourth quarter, down from year-earlier profit of $135 million, or 51 cents. The latest period included $46 million of costs from the collapsed deal with Deutsche Boerse. Excluding the charges and other items, earnings in the quarter were $130 million, or 50 cents a share, compared with $120 million, or 46 cents, last year. Shares advanced 4.5% to $28.94.

LinkedIn (LNKD), the business social networker , beat the consensus profit view for its fiscal fourth quarter and provided a solid outlook. LinkedIn reported non-GAAP earnings of $13.3 million, or 12 cents a share, for the quarter ended in December on revenue of $167.7 million. It had revenue of $81.7 million a year earlier. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected earnings of 7 cents a share in the company's fiscal fourth quarter on revenue of $159.7 million. Shares jumped 18% to $89.96.

Activision Blizzard (ATVI), the game maker, beat Wall Street's fourth-quarter earnings expectations, posting a profit of 62 cents a share on revenue of $2.41 billion. Activision saw strong sales in the quarter of its core World of Warcraft and Call of Duty franchises. Revenue declined 5% from a year earlier. Analysts were looking for earnings of 56 cents a share on revenue of $2.2 billion. Shares slid 2.7% to $12.32.

Alcatel-Lucent (ALU) posted an annual profit in 2011, its first since Alcatel and Lucent merged in 2006. Paris-based Alcatel-Lucent, the telecommunications equipment maker, posted a 2011 profit of €1.1 billion ($1.46 billion) in 2011, a swing from a 2010 loss of €334 million, on cost cuts. Shares surged 13% to $2.19.

March oil futures settled $1.17 lower at $98.67 a barrel, while April gold futures finished down $15.90 at $1,725.30.

The benchmark 10-year Treasury rose 21/32, diluting the yield to 1.967%, while the U.S. dollar index climbed 0.6% at $79.13.

-- Written by Chao Deng, Kaitlyn Kiernan and Andrea Tse in New York.



>To contact the writer of this article, click here: Andrea Tse or Kaitlyn Kiernan