Market Close Wrap-Up: March 24, 2010
The major US equity indices closed lower Wednesday following the latest signs of worsening debt problems in Europe. Fitch Ratings downgraded Portugal’s long-term foreign and local currency issuer default ratings to AA- from AA. Debt problems in Greece and other European countries have caused stocks to fall this year. The Commerce Department said that new home sales fell 2.2% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 308000. The current rate is the lowest since the government began tracking the data in 1963