MARKETS FALL OVER GREEK DEBT WORRIES

Eurozone finance ministers expressed their distrust of Greek leaders Friday by insisting there would be no bailout funds until it proves its commitment to taking steps to turn its circumstances around.

Markets, which had trended mildly lower most of the week while investors waited for Greek leaders to come to an agreement on measures that would unlock a second bailout package, tumbled steeply after eurozone finance ministers said they would hold on to the money for another six days while Athens met three demands laid out by JeanClaude Juncker, chairman of the group.

Greece must pass the legislation, which is set for a vote this weekend, find another 325million euros in savings, and provide assurances that a new government, in the event of an election, could not derail the program.

Canada’s benchmark stock index, which closed in negative territory on four of the week’s five sessions, lost 1.5% in its first weekly decline since early ecember. The S P TS composite index fell 108.52 points, or 0.87% Friday, to close at 12,389.42. All 10 of the sub- indexes declined, led by materials, down 1.2%, and telecommunications, which lost 1.2%.

The price of crude oil lost S$ 1.17 to S$ 98.67 a barrel in New ork Friday, while gold slipped S$ 15.70 to S$ 1,723.30 an ounce.

The Canadian dollar closed below par with the . S. greenback for the first time since Feb. 1, dropping S0.72 to S99.72 as investors lost their appetite for risk.

. S. markets also declined Friday, as the situation in Greece just added to the gloom caused by slumping consumer confidence numbers and a bigger- than- expected trade deficit.

The ow Jones industrial average fell 89.23 points, or 0.69%, to 12,801.23, and the Nasdaq slipped 23.35 points, or 0.8%, to 2,903.88.

European markets fell Friday as unrest grew in Athens and the coalition government started to fracture in response to the austerity package agreed to on Thursday.

The “insistence from E finance ministers that Greece should go away and look for further savings, in a move akin to squeezing further juice out of the lemon, has seen polarization among politicians, as well as protests and strikes on the streets of Athens. It also has raised fears that this weekend’s Greek parliamentary vote could result in a vote against austerity and see Greece leave the euro,” said Michael Hewson, senior market analyst at CMC Markets. “The tone had already been set earlier, when Chinese imports for January showed a sharp drop of 15.3%, raising concerns about a slowdown in the Chinese economy.”

Canada’s junior enture exchange fell 11.27 points, or 0.68%, to 1,653.55.