Ben Bernanke - Federal Reserve
Dow plunges to five-year closing low
Wednesday 08 October 2008
The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 5.11% at closing, following Monday's decline, as investors continue to fear recession, despite worldwide measures to pump life back into the economy and jump-start ailing banks.
Special Report Global capitalism on the brink?Wednesday 08 October 2008
By AFPClick here for full coverage of the financial crisis
US stocks plunged Tuesday for a second straight day as investors were gripped by fears of a deeper credit crunch leading to severe recession.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 508.39 points (5.11) percent to a five-year low of 9,447.11 just after the closing bell, following a 369-point slide Monday and a global rout.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq plummeted 108.08 points (5.80 percent) to 1,754.88 and the Standard & Poor's 500 slid 60.55 points (5.73 percent) to a preliminary close of 996.34, dropping below a key level of 1,000 points.
After a battering of markets on Monday, Wall Street took little comfort in news that central banks were pumping up liquidity to banks and the Federal Reserve opened its coffers to companies hit by the credit crunch with a new program that will buy up commercial paper, short-term debt critical for many corporate operations.
"The financial panic of the past month has sent the economy into a tailspin. The question is no longer whether there is a recession, but how severe it will be," said Mark Zandi at Economy.com.
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