US STOCKS-Wall St tumbles as banks plan fuels doubts
* Doubts about success of bank rescue plan rattle market
* Bank of America, Citigroup shares plummet
* Indexes drop more than 3 pct
* For up-to-the-minute market news, click [STXNEWS/US] (Updates to midday)
By Ellis Mnyandu
NEW YORK, Feb 10 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks tumbled on Tuesday as bank shares slid on concerns that a plan unveiled by the Obama administration to shore up the financial sector may not be enough to loosen up credit and contain the deepening recession.
Indexes slid more than 3 percent immediately following Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner's announcement of a bank rescue plan involving the mopping up of money-losing assets from the beleaguered banking system. For details, see [ID:nTRT000362]
Analysts said investors were worried the plan might not do enough to rein in the financial crisis.
Shares of Bank of America (BAC.N) slid more than 15 percent to $5.80, while JPMorgan (JPM.N) shed 6.4 percent to $25.47, while shares of Citigroup (C.N) were down 11.4 percent at $3.50.
"All together, it's not a perfect plan because the economy continues to be in trouble, and we probably haven't seen the worst of it yet," said Carl Birkelbach, head of Birkelbach Management in Chicago. "What I'm looking for more than anything is for the government to take a bigger step to stand behind mortgage debt.
The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI fell 293.34 points, or 3.55 percent, to 7,977.53. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX lost 31.80 points, or 3.66 percent, to 838.09. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC was down 47.69 points, or 3.00 percent, at 1,543.87.
The S&P financial index .GSPF dropped 7.4 percent, while the KBW Banks index .BKX was down more than 9 percent. Home builders were also hammered, with the Dow Jones home construction index .DJUSHB tumbling 8.4 percent. (Additional reporting by Ryan Vlastelica; Editing by Tom Hals)
