US stocks fell Thursday, after Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan told Congress for the second day in a row that interest rates were "fairly low," a signal that they will keep rising. Altria Group Inc tugged on the Dow after a government request that a federal court reconsider a ruling favourable to the tobacco industry. Altria, parent of cigarette maker Philip Morris USA, fell 58 cents, or nearly 1 percent, to $64.92 on the New York Stock Exchange.

The Dow Jones industrial average was down 37.69 points, or 0.35 percent, at 10,797.19 and the Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down 4.50 points, or 0.37 percent, at 1,205.84. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 11.49 points, or 0.55 percent, at 2,075.94.

Copyright Reuters, 2005