US stocks fluctuate

Stocks fluctuate as investors look to Washington

US stocks fluctuate as investors look to Washington, investors awaiting Geithner's speech

• Sara Lepro and Tim Paradis, AP Business Writers
• Monday February 9, 2009, 12:17 pm EST

• Yahoo! Buzz
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NEW YORK (AP) -- Stock prices fluctuated Monday as investors waited for Washington to make the next move.

The market traded in a narrow range as investors sought details of how the government will reshape a rescue plan for the financial industry. They're also watching as political leaders scramble to put together an economic stimulus program.

Wall Street is awaiting a Tuesday speech by Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner outlining President Barack Obama's plan to overhaul the government's $700 billion financial bailout package passed by Congress last fall. Geithner had been scheduled to announce the plan Monday, but the White House pushed back the speech to focus on the stimulus bill.

The Senate is expected to pass an $827 billion economic stimulus bill on Tuesday. The government, however, still faces the challenge of reconciling the Senate bill with the House's $819 billion version that passed earlier. Republicans and Democrats have been at odds over the plan, which is designed to help pull the economy out of the worst recession in decades. The Obama administration is still pressing to have the stimulus measure on the president's desk for signing by the middle of this month.

Markets showed little overall direction ahead of the details on the plans.

"The delay in the Geithner announcement means the markets are going to have to wait another 24 hours, and markets don't wait very well," said Alan Gayle, senior investment strategist at RidgeWorth Investments. "The delay only raises anxiety."

In midday trading, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 17.29, or 0.21 percent, to 8,263.50.

Broader stock indicators were mixed. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 0.10, or 0.01 percent, to 868.70, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 3.29, or 0.21 percent, to 1,588.42.

On Friday, the market largely overlooked a horrible jobs report and rallied in anticipation of the stimulus bill. The Labor Department said U.S. employers slashed 598,000 jobs in January. That left the unemployment rate at 7.6 percent, the highest level since late 1992.

The Dow industrials ended last week up 3.5 percent, the S&P 500 index rose 5.2 percent and the Nasdaq posted a huge 7.8 percent gain.

"Given that we had