* Stocks fall Japan's nuclear crisis, but Fed helps
* Fed sees economy on firmer footing, maintains policy
* Some investors expect Japan impact to be short-lived
* Indexes down: Dow 1.2 pct, S&P 1.1 pct, Nasdaq 1.3 pct
* For up-to-the-minute market news see []
(Updates to close)
By Ryan Vlastelica
NEW YORK, March 15 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks fell 1 percent
but ended far from session lows on Tuesday on the Federal
Reserve's more upbeat economic view and growing sentiment that
Japan's nuclear crisis would only temporarily depress shares.
In a second straight day of losses tied to Japan, the S&P
500 fell to within four points of support at 1,257, its 2010
close. The benchmark index fell more than 2 percent in early
trading and the Nasdaq briefly turned negative for the year.
Equities nearly halved their losses after the Fed stuck
with its ultra-loose monetary policy and said the economy was
gaining traction. For details, see []
The Dow Jones industrial average <> was down 137.74
points, or 1.15 percent, at 11,855.42. The Standard & Poor's
500 Index <.SPX> was down 14.52 points, or 1.12 percent, at
1,281.87. The Nasdaq Composite Index <> was down 33.64
points, or 1.25 percent, at 2,667.33.
Volume was high, with about 10.05 billion shares traded on
the New York Stock Exchange, the American Stock Exchange and
Nasdaq, above last year's daily average of 8.47 billion.
Options activity on the iShares MSCI Japan Index fund
<EWJ.P> suggested that some investors believe the selloff since
Japan's worst recorded earthquake was overdone. The investors
closed out recent long put positions or opened bullish bets.
The fund, which has a market cap of about $5.58 billion,
ended 0.2 percent lower on record high volume and was the most
actively traded ETF.
NUCLEAR ACCIDENTS
"While the outlook of nuclear accidents is justifiably
scary, other nuclear issues have had small impacts on U.S.
stocks and that's the most likely scenario here," said Jim
McDonald, chief investment strategist at Chicago-based Northern
Trust Global Investments, which has about $650 billion in
assets under management.
"It is our view at this stage that there shouldn't be
sustained disruptions, and this shouldn't be more than a
short-term drag on the United States."
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Graphic - S&P 500 and nuclear crises
http://r.reuters.com/deq58r
Breakingviews: Global investors vulnerable as Japan fears
worsen []
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A Japanese nuclear power plant caused low levels of
radiation to drift into Tokyo, prompting people to flee the
capital. Officials and markets were still trying to assess the
full extent of destruction from Japan's earthquake and tsunami,
with more than 10,000 people feared dead. For details, see
[]
The Global X Uranium exchange traded fund <URA.P> fell 7.8
percent to $14.50. Shaw Group <SHAW.N>, an engineering and
construction company that is part of a consortium that builds
reactors, dropped 2.1 percent to $34.14 on more than five times
its 10-day average trading volume.
Shares of Dow component General Electric Co <GE.N>, which
has combined nuclear ventures with Japan's Hitachi Ltd
<6501.T>, dropped 1.6 percent to $19.61 on more than twice its
50-day average volume.
"This will clearly change the risk assessment over the next
one- to two-year period for the attractiveness of nuclear
power," McDonald said. "This will give people pause."
Almost four stocks fell for every one that rose on the New
York Stock Exchange while on the Nasdaq more than three stocks
fell for every riser.
At its session low, the S&P 500 had given back more than
half the gains of the latest leg of the stock market rally,
from Dec. 1 to the year's high on Feb. 18. The S&P 500 is still
up 21 percent since September.
The CBOE VIX volatility index <.VIX> rose 15 percent to
24.32.
Dollar-denominated Nikkei futures <NKc1> fell 4.9 percent
and are down more than 10 percent for the year.
Among U.S. stocks affected by Japan, insurer American
International Group Inc <AIG.N> slid 1.9 percent at $36.78,
while aluminum producer Alcoa Inc <AA.N> lost 0.5 percent at
$16.04.
(Additional reporting by Doris Frankel and Rodrigo Campos;
Editing by Kenneth Barry)
