DOW Jones Falls Over 300 Points Amid Greece Crisis

The DOW fell over 300 points Tuesday after a European bailout plan was almost overturned by a proposed Greek referendum.
MSNBC reports;

Analysts said if Greek voters reject the unpopular bailout, it would result in a “hard default” by Greece, causing bigger losses for banks and raising the threat of systemic risk.
Greek Premier George Papandreou shocked global markets late Monday by announcing that he will put the nation’s recent bailout deal through a referendum, potentially undoing last week’s long-awaited agreement by EU leaders.

Advertisement

The news slammed European stocks, particularly the region’s banks. The Dow Jones industrial average fell sharply at the start of trading and hit a mid-session low of down 321 points. As stocks tumbled, a widely-watched gauge of investor fear, the VIX index, jumped some 25 percent, chalking up its biggest daily gain since mid-August.
U.S. stocks briefly pared their losses after the leaders of Germany and France said they were determined to fully implement decisions made at the European Union Summit last week. Leaders of the big euro zone countries hastily arranged a crisis meeting with Papandreou on Wednesday in Cannes, a day before the start of a G20 summit.

We will see what the next few days bring in terms of the markets.