Moral Victory? Dow Declines 51.70 Points; Citigroup, Merrill Roil The Financial Sector; Goldman Offers Solace
Rattled by corporate shake-ups and write-offs at Citigroup and Merrill Lynch, and by the fear that more bad financial news could be lurking, investors sent the Dow Jones Industrial Average to its lowest finish since Oct. 19. It could have been worse.</br></br>The blue-chip average finished down 51.70 points, or 0.38%, to 13543.40, more than 600 points below its record 14164.53, hit Oct. 9.</br></br>Late in the day, though, the industrials were off as much as 148.19 points.</br></br>Reflecting how jittery investors have become, one catalyst for the late-day recovery was Goldman Sachs Group's denial of a rumor that it was about to announce its own write-offs as a result of exposure to bad mortgages. The denial by Goldman was broadcast by CNBC and the stock market began rebounding around that time.</br></br>Goldman's comment "gave some solace to the market, which has been looking for something to hold onto with the ship sort of adrift," said stock trader Joseph Benanti at Rosenblatt Securities in New York. "If we weren't saddled with these financial issues, the market would be higher already."