A trader watches his screen on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, December 15, 2008. U.S. stocks retreated on Monday with the Nasdaq falling more than 1 percent as shares of big-cap tech companies declined, while uncertainty over the fate of a possible rescue plan for struggling automakers remained.

A man uses a Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA) bank ATM machine in Madrid Dec. 15, 2008. Investors around the world have scrambled since Friday to assess potential losses from an alleged 50 billion U.S.dollars fraud by Bernard Madoff, the prominent Wall Street trader arrested last week. BBVA, Spain's second-largest bank, said on Monday its international operation has about 30 million euros exposure to Madoff, and it sees a maximumpotential loss from Madoff-linked investments of 300 million euros (404 million dollars).

NEW YORK, Dec. 15 (Xinhua) -- Wall Street fell moderately on Monday as investors continued to be concerned about the U.S. auto industry rescue and more firms turned out to be victims of the largest Ponzi Scheme in history.

The market sentiment was somewhat lifted in the earlier trading after U.S. President George W. Bush said on Monday morning that his administration is "now in the process of working with the stakeholders on a way forward" to rescue the country's crippled auto industry.

A 14-billion-dollar loan package to the three leading U.S. automakers -- General Motors Corp., Chrysler LLC and Ford Motor Co.-- was rejected by the U.S. Senate last week, delivering a blow to the market as investors were worried that any collapse of the three would result in thousands of job losses, another hit to the already battered economy.

Wall Street became more concerned on Monday as the victim list of the legendary investment manager Bernard Madoff continued to grow. Banks and financial institutions including HSBC, BNP Paribas, Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC and hedge fund Man Group PLC are revealed to have exposure to Madoff's fund. Madoff was arrested on last Thursday for a giant Ponzi Scheme that could amount to 50 billion dollars.

Investors are also cautious as they await Fed's Tuesday decision on interest rates. Most expect the Fed to cut interest rate again, ranging between half point to three quarter point.

Monday's economic data highlighted a decline in the November industrial production. The U.S. Federal Reserve reported that industrial activity dropped by 0.6 percent in November, slightly lower than a drop of 0.8 percent expected by analysts. The capacity utilization rate for total industry fell to 75.4 percent in November, 5.6 percentage points below its average level from 1972 to 2007.

Conditions for New York manufacturers deteriorated significantly in December, with the general business conditions index falling to a negative 25.8 in the month from a negative 25.4in November, the New York Federal Reserve reported on Monday. A negative reading indicates a contraction in the sector.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 65.15 to 8,564.53. Broader stock indicators were also lower. The Standard & Poor's 500 index dipped 11.16 to 868.57, and the Nasdaq composite index slipped 32.38 to 1,508.34.