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Wall Street ends lower on financial concerns

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-07-15 09:11

Wall Street pared early gains boosted by the US government's plan to aid mortgage financiers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and ended lower as financial shares suffered their biggest drop in eight years.

The Federal Reserve and the US Treasury Department said Sunday they would aid Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two largest providers of financing for US home mortgages, if needed in order to ease some worries of further turmoil in the credit markets. The release of the plan help stocks soar in early trading Monday.

However, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac retreated after Goldman Sachs said their shares would resume falling.

Moreover, the US government's seizure of IndyMac Bancorp Inc and prediction of more credit losses overshadowed the market.

The US government took over IndyMac Bancorp Friday. IndyMac became the second largest financial institution to close in US history. Concerns about regional banks sent National City Corp to a 24-year low. And Washington Mutual Inc posted the steepest decline ever.

The Dow Jones fell 45.35, or 0.41 percent, to 11,055.19. Broader indexes also turned lower. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 11.19, or 0.90 percent, to 1,228.30; and the Nasdaq fell 26.21, or 1.17 percent, to 2,212.87.