Dow Off 157 as Rate Fears Return
Stocks were mixed in volatile trading as blue-chip issues, falling victim once again to investor worries about interest rates, ended a two-day rally. Technology stocks managed a slim advance.</br></br>The Dow Jones industrial average fell 156.68 to close at 10,561.41, wiping out more than half of the past two sessions' 292- point gain.</br></br>Broader indicators were mixed. The Standard & Poor's 500-stock fell index 14.38, to 1387.67, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 6.88, to 4427.65.</br></br>American Express led the Dow lower, tumbling 5-9/32, to 153-27/ 32, as investors guessed it would be among the stocks to suffer if the Federal Reserve continues raising interest rates to force a slowdown in the U.S. economy. In an effort to keep inflation under control, the Fed has raised rates four times since last June.</br></br>"The U.S. economy doesn't seem to be slowing down at all," said Alan Ackerman, senior vice president at Fahnestock & Co. in New York. "Stocks continue to climb a wall of worry over higher interest rates."