Some of the largest losses are likely to be in the shaky subprime lending sector, including shares of Fremont General and New Century, both of which unveiled new problems.

The futures contract for the Dow Jones Industrial Average last was down 43 points at 12,065. Among Dow components, Microsoft Corp was down 1.4% at $27.37 and Intel Corp. off 1.5% at $18.93 in premarket trade.

The futures contracts for the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100 were off 7 points at 1,378.80 and 10 points lower at 1,716.2 respectively.

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The UMich. consumer sentiment index fell to 91.3 in late February from an initial reading of 93.3 earlier in the month. This is the lowest reading since September.

Sentiment eroded early in February after hitting a two-year high of 96.9 in January.

Researchers at the University of Michigan said that rising energy costs and worsening labor market conditions at the lowest income levels was behind the decline.

Gasoline prices were up 10% from late January to late February.

Much of the economic concern was concentrated in the Midwest, researchers said.

"While the data are still consistent with a soft-landing, it is only 'soft' on average, as some parts of the economy suffer much more than others," said Richard Curtin, the director of the survey.

The current conditions index slipped to 106.7 in late February from 108.3 earlier in the month. This is down from 111.3 in January.

The expectations index fell to 81.5 in late February from 83.7 previously. The index is down from 87.6 in January.

Too few interviews were conducted following Tuesday's stock market decline to have an impact on February's data, researchers said. The March results will indicate the impact of the declines in stock prices on consumer confidence.

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