Wall Street pauses after rally; European shares close high
US stocks ended little changed on Monday as investors took a pause from a recent rally, awaiting earnings from bellwethers such as Apple later in the week.
The S&P 500 is up nearly 5 percent so far this year as an improving US economy has boosted investor optimism. The Dow and S&P 500 both had their best weekly performances in a month last week.
The Dow Jones industrial average slipped 11.66 points, or 0.09 percent, at 12,708.82. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 0.62 point, or 0.05 percent, at 1,316.00. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 2.53 points, or 0.09 percent, at 2,784.17.
European stocks hit their highest close since early August, with euro zone banks gaining sharply following a report that France and Germany were calling for a relaxation of global bank capital rules to prevent a credit crunch.
The STOXX Europe 600 Euro Zone Banking Index rose 3.9 percent. Major gainers included Commerzbank, Societe Generale and UniCredit up 13, 8.6 and 10.4 percent respectively. Commerzbank is up more than 49 percent in 2012.
The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares rose 0.5 percent to 1,048.21 points, the highest close in more than five months.
The Nikkei average ended flat to halt a four-day winning streak, with early gains capped by market worries over Greece after negotiations with private creditors failed, raising the stakes for a meeting later in the day at which euro zone finance ministers will decide terms for a debt restructuring.
The benchmark Nikkei ended at 8,765.90 after rising 3.1 percent last week, while the broader Topix gained 0.2 percent to 756.79.
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