Azernews.Az

By Bloomberg

U.S. stock-index futures fell, after a year- end rally that drove the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index to its 52nd record close in 2014, amid the prospect of Greek snap elections.

Futures on the S&P 500 expiring in March slipped 0.2 percent to 2,079.20 at 8:01 a.m. in New York. Dow Jones Industrial Average contracts lost 49 points, or 0.3 percent, to 17,963.

Equities broke through milestones last week, bolstered by the fastest expansion for the American economy in more than a decade. The Federal Reserve’s pledge on Dec. 17 to be patient in raising interest rates helped the S&P 500 fully recoup a 5 percent loss in the first half of the month.

“There’s lots for investors to digest going into 2015,” said James Buckley, who helps oversee about $47 billion as a portfolio manager at Baring Asset Management Ltd. in London. “The focus will likely be on more macro-type events immediately. The U.S. economy is the one real bright spot. That economy is doing phenomenally well. That in itself is reason to be optimistic.”

The S&P 500 advanced 0.9 percent to a record in the holiday-shortened week and the Dow climbed above 18,000 for the first time. The Russell 2000 Index of small-cap stocks also advanced to an all-time high and the Nasdaq Composite Index reached its highest level since March 2000.

Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras failed in his third and final attempt to persuade parliament to back his candidate for head of state. Concern that anti-austerity party Syriza will win snap elections next month roiled stocks in Athens today, as such an outcome risks the European Union’s common currency and the start of the European Central Bank’s bond-buying plan.

Economic reports this week may show consumer confidence climbed in December, pending home sales rose in November, while an Institute for Supply Management index of manufacturing slipped this month, according to economists surveyed by Bloomberg.