Stocks Plunge as Greece's Prime Minister Calls Unexpected Public Referendum

U.S. stocks sold off sharply on Tuesday after Greece's prime minister called an unexpected public referendum to approve Europe's debt deal, sparking fears of the deal's jeopardization. The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 2.2%, the S&P 500 sank 2.7%, and the Nasdaq lost 2.7% in the early going. Bank stocks were hit especially hard, with major European banks experiencing significant losses.

Key Takeaways:

• U.S. stocks dropped sharply on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones industrial average falling 261 points (2.2%), the S&P 500 sinking 34 points (2.7%), and the Nasdaq losing 72 points (2.7%) at the opening bell.
• Bank stocks were hit particularly hard, with shares of Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase, and Goldman Sachs all falling more than 5% in the early going.
• European banks BNP Paribas, Credit Suisse, and Deutsche Bank lost more than 8% in value.
• Germany's DAX lost 3.5%, Britain's FTSE 100 dropped 5.6%, and France's CAC 40 tumbled 4.5% in response to the news.
• Stocks are coming off sharp losses from Monday, when questions and doubts arose regarding the rescue package agreed upon by European leaders last week.
• Companies like Pfizer, Thomson Reuters, and TransCanada posted mixed results, with shares falling despite beating earnings forecasts.

Statistics:

• The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 261 points (2.2%).
• The S&P 500 sank 34 points (2.7%).
• The Nasdaq lost 72 points (2.7%).
• Bank stocks were down more than 5% at the opening bell.
• Asian markets ended mostly in the red, with the Hang Seng in Hong Kong falling 2.5% and Japan's Nikkei shedding 1.7%.
• The dollar rose against the euro and British pound, and versus the Japanese yen.
• Oil for December delivery slipped $3.29 to $89.90 barrel.
• Gold futures for December delivery fell $35.70 to $1,689.50 an ounce.

Sources:

• CNNMoney staff NEW YORK (CNNMoney) --
• Bloomberg -
• Thomson Reuters @thomsonreuters