Fitch Ratings warning sends stocks down

A warning from Fitch Ratings that large U.S. banks could be hit hard if Europe's debt crisis spreads sent stocks on a downward spiral Wednesday.

Indexes moved between gains and losses before Fitch released its mid-afternoon report. The Dow was down 36 points with an hour of trading left, then ended the day down 190 points.

Fitch, one of the three main credit ratings agencies along with S&P and Moody's, said in its report U.S. banks could be "greatly affected" if Europe's debt crisis continues to spread beyond the financially troubled countries of Greece, Ireland, Italy, Portugal and Spain.

Large banks took a late dive. Bank of America Corp. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. each lost 3.7 percent. Goldman Sachs dropped 4.1 percent and Morgan Stanley 7.9 percent.

U.S. stocks had rallied in the past week as new governments took over in Greece and Italy and promised to implement budget reforms. It's a familiar pattern, said Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at Harris Private Bank in Chicago. "It seems like it's always one step forward and two steps back."

The Dow Jones industrial average closed at 11,905.59, down 190.57. The Standard & Poor's 500 index closed at 1,236.91, down 20.90. The Nasdaq was off 46.59 to close at 1,639.61.