NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks extended losses on Tuesday, with the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 briefly falling more than 3 percent, after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke cautioned that downside risks to economic growth have worsened, though he signaled a readiness to lower interest rates.
The market had already been sharply lower before Bernanke's comments, on concerns about the widening credit crisis.
The Dow Jones industrial average was down 225.40 points, or 2.26 percent, at 9,730.10. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down 26.57 points, or 2.51 percent, at 1,030.32. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 50.22 points, or 2.70 percent, at 1,812.74.
(Reporting by Kristina Cooke; Editing by Jan Paschal)
