In a May 3, 2012, photo, trader Ryan Falvey, left, works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Wall Street is poised to open lower with Dow futures and the S&P 500 futures both 0.7 percent lower. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)PALLAVI GOGOI
NEW YORK (AP) – U.S. stocks were under pressure after angry voters in Greece and France rejected painful budget cuts demanded by international lenders.
Investors are uncertain over how the results will affect Europe’s plans to rein in spending and keep the euro zone’s debt crisis from worsening.
The Dow Jones industrial average was down 32 points to 13,006 shortly after noon Monday. The Standard & Poor’s 500 fell less than a point to 1,368. The Nasdaq composite index fell 1 point to at 2,955.
In Europe, most markets recovered from early losses and turned higher. Greece was the exception: the main index in Athens plunged 6.6 percent after Greek voters expressed their anger over crippling income cuts by punishing mainstream politicians. No party has enough votes to govern alone, leaving the parliament split. French voters ousted President Nicolas Sarkozy and elected Socialist Francois Hollande, who pledged “to finish with austerity.”