Debt deal deadlock to weigh on stocks
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Markets look set to erase some of last week's gains as investors lose confidence in Washington's ability to raise the all-important U.S. debt ceiling.
U.S. stock futures were moving lower Monday morning ahead of the opening bell. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down by over 100 points, or 0.7%, as investors saw no signs of progress in negotiations to resolve either the debt issue or the partial federal government shutdown.
Monday's pessimism contrasts with a more hopeful mood at the end of last week.
A surge of optimism about progress in Washington of resolving the debt ceiling sent the Dow Jones Industrial Average up by more than 320 points on Thursday, its biggest point jump since December 2011. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq delivered their second best advances of the year.
Thanks to the big gain, the Dow and S&P 500 ended the week higher for the first time in three weeks.
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'It felt like we were heading towards an agreement in the U.S. last week, only for it to fall apart over the weekend,' wrote Simon Smith, chief economist at FxPro, in a note to clients. 'In theory, the U.S. debt ceiling will be hit later in the week, meaning the prospect of a U.S. default remains a real and present danger.'
Related: Stock markets await U.S. debt, shutdown solution
No major U.S. economic reports are on tap Monday.
U.S. Treasury markets and the partially shut federal government are closed for Columbus Day.
European markets were also weaker in morning trading, reflecting anxiety about the possible fallout from the U.S. political stalemate on the world economy and markets.
Most Asian markets were closed Monday. Stock exchanges in Hong Kong, Japan, Indonesia and India were shut for holidays. But the Shanghai Composite index was open, and finished the trading day with a 0.4% gain. 
First Published: October 14, 2013: 5:05 AM ET
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