U.S. Stocks Add To Losses As Consumer Confidence Falls

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks pulled back Tuesday, solidifying early losses after data showing consumer expectations at a 35-year low and home values falling further.

"The recent credit crisis has led to much broader and larger structural issues that will now confront the economy, thereby making future economic data the primary focus," said Tom DiGaloma, head of U.S. Treasury trading at Jefferies & Co.

Alternately up and down in the starting moments after the opening bell, the major stock indexes extended early losses after the Conference Board reported U.S. consumers' confidence fell in March. .

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was more recently down 77.09 points, or 0.6%, to 12,471.55, with 21 of its 30 components trading lower.

Blue-chip declines were led by General Motors Corp. , off 4.5%, and Bank of America Corp. , down 3.7%.

Dow gains were fronted by chemical giant DuPont Co. , recently up 1.3%.

Technology stocks were among those showing some signs of life, with Yahoo Inc. shares gaining 2.6% after Citigroup Inc. hiked its rating on the stock. .

The S&P 500 fell 2.31 points, or nearly 0.2%, to 1,347.47, while the Nasdaq Composite edged 1.09 points up to 2,327.84.

Ahead of the opening bell, the latest Case-Shiller data compiled by Standard & Poor's showed U.S. home prices fell 10.7% in the past year. .

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, oil futures fell $1.37 to $99.49 a barrel.

Gold futures rallied as weakness in the U.S. dollar boosted demand for the precious metal, with the contract for April delivery recently rising $9.70 to $928.40 an ounce on Nymex. .

The dollar bumped lower, with an index measuring the U.S. currency against a basket of major counterparts at 72.28, off from 72.340 earlier Tuesday. .

U.S. stocks rallied on Monday, furthering the prior session's strong gains, after J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. increased its offer for Bear Stearns Cos. and after the National Association of Realtors reported that sales of existing homes rose for the first time in seven months.

Overseas, international stocks jumped on the Wall Street advance. The FTSE 100 rose more than 3% in London and overnight, the Hang Seng benchmark surged nearly 7% in Hong Kong.

By Kate Gibson