Stocks fell on Wall Street on Monday as investors fretted over the consequences of a possible debt default by Greece, but talk of multi-billion dollar healthcare deals buoyed shares in the sector, cutting into the market's loss.

Senior executives of listed firms in China have stepped up the pace at which they are selling shares in their own companies, suggesting they may have doubts about whether their stock prices can go much higher.

Every day hundreds of garment traders alight at the newly-built Humen station to ply their wares in the southern Chinese city of Dongguan, arriving on high speed trains that whoosh through the terminal every ten minutes.

One has been closely involved with the family business from his early 20s and is driven to succeed. The other had to be lured back from a decade's hiatus from the company and has operated at the edges of the empire.

U.S. stocks fell on Friday as Greek debt talks hit a stalemate and as concern over how soon the Federal Reserve might raise interest rates kept investors cautious.

Wall Street was set to open lower as optimism regarding a resolution of the Greek debt crisis faded with the International Monetary Fund pulling out of bailout talks.

U.S. stocks climbed on Thursday as retail sales data lifted the outlook for consumer spending and as healthcare shares gained.

The New Zealand dollar slumped 2.5 percent against the U.S. dollar on Thursday, hitting a five-year low after the Reserve Bank of New Zealand surprised some by cutting interest rates and flagging the chance of more easing.

U.S. stocks jumped on Wednesday, helped by gains in technology and financial shares and optimism that Greece may be closer to reaching a deal with creditors.

German bond yields hit 1 percent for the first time since September on Wednesday as long-term inflation expectations rose, although recent rollercoaster moves in fixed-income markets kept stock markets flat.