Why the Dow's Dropping This Morning

Fears of trouble in Greece are back in the headlines today as the stock market gave back some ground after several market measures hit multiyear highs last week. The indebted nation failed to reach a deadline to respond to bailout terms from the IMF and the European Union, raising concerns that a default may not be as orderly as everyone hoped. Just before 11 a.m. EST, the Dow Jones Industrials (INDEX: ^DJI) were down 46 points to 12,816, while the S&P 500 (INDEX: ^GSPC) fell five points to 1,340.

American Express (NYS: AXP) was the biggest decliner early, falling 1.5%. Financial stocks bear more risk if the Greek situation cascades into a global financial crisis. But longer term, AmEx also faces an ongoing challenge from competitors focusing on pushing consumers away from using credit cards and toward mobile-payment systems.

Boeing (NYS: BA) also lost more than 1%. Reports surfaced that a potential problem with its 787 Dreamliner will require repairs to the carbon-composite aft fuselage of the plane. Boeing believes the repairs won't have an effect on Dreamliner production, which has seen delays during its illustrious history.

Bucking the downward move was Disney (NYS: DIS) , which rose almost 1% in early trading. The company got an upgrade from analyst Davenport, which cited last week's improved employment figures as a potentially positive driver for the stock going forward. Certainly, improving financial conditions for consumers bode well for the entertainment company, which releases its latest earnings tomorrow.

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At the time thisarticle was published Fool contributor Dan Caplinger doesn't own shares of the companies mentioned. You can follow him on Twitter here. Motley Fool newsletter services have recommended buying shares of Walt Disney and writing a covered strangle position in American Express. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Fool has a disclosure policy.

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