NEW YORK (AP) ? Stocks are edging lower in midday trading as talks drag on between Greek political leaders over a fresh austerity package required for the country to get more bailout loans.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 36 points to 12,826 shortly before noon on Monday. That’s a drop of 0.3 percent. American Express Co. fell the most in the Dow, 1.5 percent.
The S&P 500 fell 3 points to 1,342, for a drop of 0.2 percent. The Nasdaq fell 7 points to 2,898.
Greece’s Prime Minister Lucas Papademos will meet with negotiators from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund in the afternoon and then with the leaders of the three parties backing his coalition government. The Greek parliament must sign off on any budget deal.