By Kate Gibson
The stock market's tentative Wednesday moves -- first rising,
then falling -- came as investors clamored for additional details
on the Obama administration's plan to help struggling home
owners.
In unveiling his strategy Wednesday afternoon in Phoenix,
President Obama should offer "more details, rather than less, to
avoid the fallout after [Treasury Secretary Tim] Geithner's
non-plan plan," said Dan Greenhaus, an analyst with the equity
strategy group at Miller Tabak & Co.
"It's important to announce specific dates and specific monetary
quantities to give the market a firm handle on how much he intends
to do and when he intends to do it," Greenhaus said.
Earlier Wednesday, the administration laid forth a $75 billion
program for "at risk" homeowners aimed at slowing foreclosures.
Last week, Geithner's strategy for straightening out the U.S.
banking industry got widely panned by investors, who found it
lacking in many important details.
After slipping to three-month lows during Tuesday's session,
equities wavered between modest gains and losses in recent action,
with the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) down 21.26 points at
7,531.34.
Consumer discretionary shares paced the declines, led by home
builders including KB Home (KBH) and Lennar Corp. (LEN), both down
more than 6%.
The S&P 500 (SPX) fell 3.02 points to 786.15, and the Nasdaq
Composite (RIXF) declined 2.67 points to 1,467.99.
Financials also weighed, with CIT Group Inc. (CIT) among the
bigger laggards, its shares off 6.5%.
"The market remains in the dark with regards to the government's
plan to help the banking sector. We're about to get specifics on
housing, but the bank sector is the forgotten stepchild," said
Greenhaus.