Stocks Stall Amid Continued Anxiety

Traders watch, wait as Fed weighs interest rate cut
By Sam Biddle,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 23, 2007 4:33 PM CDT
Stocks Stall Amid Continued Anxiety
An employee of Countrywide Financial helps customers at the Northridge branch of Los Angeles, Calif., Tuesday Aug. 22, 2007. Countrywide Financial Corp. said Bank of America Corp. made a $2 billion investment in the company Wednesday as the nation's largest mortgage lender tries to weather a credit...   (Associated Press)

The Dow dipped a quarter-point to close at 13,235.88 today as investors continue to fret over the possibility of a Fed interest rate cut. The S&P 500 dropped 1.57 to 1,462.5, and the Nasdaq fell 11.10 to 2,541.70. Home Depot led the retreat; shares fell fell 2.2% on news that the sale of one of its divisions is in trouble.

Bank of America's decision to sink $2 billion into ailing mortgage lender Countrywide buoyed trader optimism slightly, MarketWatch reports, with Deutsche Bank predicting the investment would bolster the real estate finance sector. "At least in the near-term a relative state of tranquillity has settled into the markets as we wait for the next shoe to drop," said one market strategist. (More Wall Street stories.)

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