NEW YORK — Investors took scant comfort Wednesday from the government’s plans to revive the housing market and overall economy.
Wall Street ended with only modest changes after a steep sell-off Tuesday on worries about the global economy and banks in Eastern Europe. Several attempts to rally unraveled Wednesday as market indicators hovered around the lows they marked in November.
Investors reacted coolly to a $75 billion mortgage-relief plan President Barack Obama introduced Wednesday, which would provide incentives to mortgage lenders to help borrowers reduce their payments.
Plunging home values are at the center of the 14-month-old recession, which has been one of the most severe in decades. The announcement came a day after Obama signed into law a $787 billion economic- stimulus plan.
“I think the general consensus is the Fed, the Treasury, the government just can’t seem to get out ahead of this,” said Harry Rady, chief executive at Rady Asset Management in La Jolla, Calif. “Whatever they do is already discounted and expected by the market. What we saw today was just kind of a big yawn.”
The Dow Jones industrial average edged up 3.03, less than 0.1 percent, to 7,555.63. For a second day, the blue chips managed to finish just above their November closing low.
Broader stock indicators slipped. The Standard & Poor’s 500 fell 0.75, 0.1 percent, to 788.42, and the Nasdaq composite fell 2.69, 0.2 percent, to 1,467.97. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 5.72, 1.3 percent, to 423.18.
Investors’ caution Wednesday followed another round of downbeat news about the economy. The government said construction of homes and apartments tumbled by 16.8 percent in January to a record-low annual rate. Applications for building permits also dropped to a record low.
The government also said production at the nation’s factories, mines and utilities fell a greater-than-expected 1.8 percent last month. It marked the third straight month in which production fell.
Some investors remain skeptical of the government’s ability to lift the economy.
“There’s a huge lack of confidence in that stimulus package,” said David Hefty, chief executive of Cornerstone Wealth Management in Auburn, Ind.
The Dow and S&P remain above their Nov. 21 trading lows, an important psychological barrier for traders. For the Dow, 7,449.38 was the November trading low; for the S&P, it was 741.02.
