A bearish mood is reigning over Wall Street this morning after Moody’s warned it could cut the credit ratings of over 100 banks. Add in the precarious position of Greece, and you have all the ingredients for a sell-off. Dow futures are currently down 36 points to 12,727. Nasdaq 100 futures are also declining, down 6.50 points to 2,551. S&P 500 futures are rounding out the losses, down 5.75 points to 1,336.50.
Late yesterday, Moody’s announced it was reviewing the ratings for over 100 financial institutions. Citing the EU crisis among other issues, the ratings agency said it could cut ratings of banks by multiple notches. US institutions under the gun include Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan.
In Europe, the Greek debt crisis continued unabated. Some analysts are beginning to believe that the EU is preparing to eject Greece from the single currency union. The looming default deadline in March should make the officials speed up on what has been a multi-year crisis at this point. [Read more...]