US stocks finish mixed amid economy and credit worries

Stocks in the US finished a back-and-forth session mixed today as investors grappled with weaker-than-expected economic data and weighed the chances of the Federal Reserve lowering interest rates.

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke is expected to speak tomorrow at the central bank’s annual conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and said in a letter to Sen. Charles Schumer that Fed policymakers are “prepared to act as needed” if the market’s turmoil damages the economy. The Fed’s next meeting is September 18, but some on Wall Street expect the central bank could act sooner.