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NEW YORK (AP) - Investors are entering the new trading week tentatively after Moody's Investors Service said the U.S. could eventually lose its top-notch credit rating. Stocks fell slightly in early trading Monday.

A new report showed manufacturing activity in New York has slowed slightly in March. A separate report showed industrial production unexpectedly rose in February.

Overseas markets mostly fell.

Credit ratings agency Moody's said debt affordability is "most stretched" in the U.S. and Britain among countries with the top "AAA" rating. A drop in the credit rating could make it more expensive for the government to borrow money.

A separate report on manufacturing in the New York region showed a smaller-than-expected drop in activity. The Empire State manufacturing index likely fell 22.9 from 24.9 in February. Economists had predicted a drop to 21.5 this month.

The Fed said industrial production rose 0.1 percent in February. Economists polled by Thomson Reuters had forecast a drop of 0.1 percent in activity from the nation's factories, mines and utilities. It was the eighth consecutive month of growth, showing the sector is recovering from the recession.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 6.95, or 0.1 percent, to 10,617.74. The Standard & Poor's 500 index dropped 3.01, or 0.3 percent, to 1,146.98, while the Nasdaq composite index fell 6.64, or 0.3 percent, to 2,361.02.

Investors are also awaiting the Federal Reserve's regular interest-rate committee meeting Tuesday. While it is unlikely to raise a key interest rate from historic lows, traders will be looking for clues in the Fed's statement as to when it might make a move.

Investors have been factoring in an eventual rate hike, but any signs that the move will be made sooner rather than later is likely to - at least in the short-term - hurt stocks.

Stocks pushed higher last week after investors grew more confident about the health of the financial sector. The Standard & Poor's 500 index and Nasdaq composite index both hit their highest levels in more than a year.

Sen. Chris Dodd, a Democrat from Connecticut and chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, is expected to present a bill Monday designed to overhaul financial regulation.