Last week’s slide continued on Monday with a 1% loss on concern that Greece may disconnect itself from the Euro currency. On Tuesday the Dow fell to a 4-month low, once again on worries about Greece. It was much of the same on Wednesday, although the Dow managed to keep its losses small. The losses continued on Thursday, as the small-cap Russell 2000 index has dropped 10% since its recent high in March. Stocks finished off the week on Friday with yet another loss. Even Facebook’s IPO could not energize the markets, as the Dow finished with a loss in 12 of the last 13 trading sessions, including every day this week.

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Major political upheaval in France and Greece over the weekend failed to have much of an impact on the markets on Monday, as initial trepidation in the morning faded, and the major indexes finished near the unchanged mark. On Tuesday, the Dow lost ground for the fifth straight session on concerns over the fallout from the recent Greek elections. The slide continued on Wednesday, with Spanish stocks falling to to their lowest levels since 2003 as Eurozone unrest continues. On Thursday the Dow finally managed a gain after six consecutive losses, although the gain was quite modest, following a mildly encouraging US labor report. Stocks finished the week on Friday down once again after J.P. Morgan announced a $2 billion loss that temporarily roiled banking stocks.

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On Monday, stocks finished off the month with a loss following news that Spain’s economy shrunk again for a second consecutive quarter. Still, the Dow managed to end the month with its seventh consecutive monthly gain. May started on an up note on Tuesday, with the Dow once again hitting a four-year high on good manufacturing news. On Wednesday the major indexes finished mixed, as a report indicating that private-sector job growth seems to be slowing dampened buyers’ enthusiasm. On Thursday, stocks fell once again in anticipation of Friday’s US employment report. The selling accelerated on Friday, as the employment report failed to meet expectations. While the unemployment rate slipped down to 8.1%, this decline was mainly due to workers leaving the work force rather than an increase in the number of new jobs.

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Stocks kicked off the week on Monday with renewed fear on European debt and the state of Europe’s economy, as the Dow dropped 100 points. Tuesday was a good day for blue chip stocks, but a poor day for tech stocks, as Apple weighed down the NASDAQ index to give that index its fifth consecutive loss. This downturn in Apple and the NASDAQ was quickly reversed on Wednesday, with an encouraging earnings report by Apple. A reassuring statement by Fed chief Ben Bernanke that interest rates will remain low also gave a boost to the market in general. On Thursday, stocks rose again despite a disappointing US jobs report. Stocks closed the week on Friday with another gain following several solid earnings reports, most notably by Amazon.

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The Dow, NASDAQ, and S&P 500 finished with an unusual 1.4% spread on Monday, as the Dow reacted well to a positive retail sales report, while Apple dragged down tech stocks. On Tuesday all the major indexes soared following a successful Spanish bond sale that indicates that the beleaguered European country will not need a bailout. The market gave back some of these gains on Wednesday after earnings reports from tech giants IBM and Intel disappointed investors. On Thursday the downturn continued when US labor, housing, and manufacturing reports did not meet expectations. Stocks wrapped up the week on Friday with another split decision as good earnings reports from GE and Microsoft propelled the Dow upward, while the NASDAQ and S&P 500 lagged.

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