US stocks fell, erasing last week’s gain, after Goldman, Sachs & Co. told investors to sell shares of Citigroup Inc. and Lowe’s Cos. cut its earnings forecast for the second time in two months.

Citigroup retreated to a four-year low after Goldman said credit-market losses may cause the biggest U.S. bank by assets to report $15 billion in writedowns over the next two quarters. Merrill Lynch & Co. and Morgan Stanley also slumped after Goldman cut its share-price estimate on both companies. Lowe’s, the second-largest home-improvement retailer, slid the most since May 2003 after the housing slump caused a drop in profit.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index lost 22.72, or 1.6 percent, to 1,436.02 at 11:15 a.m. in New York, its lowest since August. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 172.82, or 1.3 percent, to 13,003.96. The Nasdaq Composite Index decreased 44.57, or 1.7 percent, to 2,592.67. The Dow Jones Transportation Average slid 69.77, or 1.5 percent, to 4,494.07, the lowest in 13 months. Almost nine stocks dropped for every one that rose on the New York Stock Exchange. [MORE]