Dow posts 6-day losing streak (ext)

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- U.S. stocks bounced back somewhat from a sharp sell-off Wednesday, but all three major indexes closed in the red as investors continue to fret about Greece and Spain.

Stocks were down sharply at the open, with the Dow, Nasdaq and S&P losing more than 1% before clawing back. Wednesday marked the sixth straight day of losses for the Dow, in which time it has slipped 3.3%.

Traders said there was no single catalyst for the early afternoon rebound. Instead, investors started to sense that the market was oversold in the morning, but wariness over the fiscal and political health of Greece and Spain kept it in negative territory.

Investors have become increasingly concerned that Spain might need to inject public-sector money to save its banks. Yields on Spanish 10-year bonds crossed 6% for the first time in two weeks on Wednesday. Spain's stock market fell to its lowest level since 2003.

Meanwhile, Greece continues to weigh on investors' minds. Elections failed to yield a coalition government, which throws into question whether the nation will be able to meet the requirements needed to secure its next round of bailout funds.

"We're handicapped by Europe in the U.S.," said Ryan Detrick, senior technical strategist at Schaeffer's Investment Research. "Every day we seem to be getting more reason to realize that Europe's issues are far from being resolved."

With earnings seasons nearly wrapped up and no major economic reports on tap, investors have few reasons to turn away from Europe.

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) closed down 97 points, or 0.8%, while the S&P 500 (SPX) shed 9 points, or 0.7%, and the Nasdaq (COMP) sank 12 points, or 0.4%.

The dollar rose against the euro and British pound, but fell against the Japanese yen.

Oil for June delivery fell 20 cents to $96.81 a barrel.

Gold futures for June delivery tumbled $10.30 to $1,592.20 an ounce.