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  • $700 Billion Plan Rejected as American Voters Voice Discontent - 30 September 2008
  • The decision by the U.S. House of Representatives to reject the proposed $700 billion bailout for the financial sector has had rapid and far reaching repercussions. Within Monday’s seven and a half hour trading day, a record $1.2 trillion disappeared from the U.S. stock market. The Dow Jones industrial average tumbled by 777.68 points, or close to 7 percent, breaking all previous one-day decline records, while the S&P 500 dropped by 8.5 percent and NASDAQ by 9.1 percent.

  • U.K.’s Bradford & Bingley – Another Financial Sector Casualty - 29 September 2008
  • While U.S. officials hammer out the details of the much publicized $700 billion bailout of financial institutions, the U.K. is also facing a host of problems relating to the financial sector, calling for bailout plans at the expense of embattled British taxpayers. U.K. officials are currently dealing with the collapse of Yorkshire-based Bradford & Bingley (LSE: BB), a major U.K. bank with 197 branches and 140 agencies, and just under one million shareholders.

  • Is Multi Billion Dollar Bailout Plan On A Rocky Road To Nowhere? - 26 September 2008
  • With the Bush Administration’s $700 billion financial sector bailout plan dominating news headlines, and authorities seemingly unable to reach an agreement, the stock markets continue to be tossed about on a turbulent sea of uncertainties. Thursday saw a slight market rally, with investors cautiously optimistic that the bailout plan would be approved on Thursday, and put into action in the very near future. Indeed, at one stage on Thursday it did appear that an agreement had been reached, but then, once again, the wheels fell off, squashing any hope of an early resolution.

  • Are Investment Fees Eroding Your Investment? - 25 September 2008
  • Irrespective of who is handling your investment portfolio, it is important that you review the performance of your investments regularly. While your primary focus will be on your investment return, be sure to review the investment fees, or internal expenses, of each of your investments too. These can vary tremendously and over a period of time and could be costing you a lot of money that should rather be working for you.

  • $700 Billion Plan - More Questions than Answers - 24 September 2008
  • Investors remain on high alert as Congress continues to weigh the pros and cons of the Bush administration’s proposed $700 billion financial institution bailout plan. It appears that the more the matter is debated, the more the cons start to outweigh the pros overall. The markets have responded to the uncertainty of the situation by dipping even further on Tuesday, with the Dow ending the day 161.5 points lower, the S&P 500 was down 18.87 points and NASDAQ fell 25.64 points, being a decline of 1.5%, 1.6% and 1.2% respectively.

  • Caution Called For In $700 Billion Bailout Plan - 23 September 2008
  • Friday’s elated response at stock exchanges, to US Federal Government’s proposal to buy troubled assets from financial institutions was short-lived as reality set in with regard to the sheer magnitude of the problem, along with doubts as to whether a bailout would unfreeze the credit market, and concerns over the burden that the proposed $700 billion bailout would place on American taxpayers. Monday saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average drop by 372.75 points, with the S&P 500 losing 47.99 points and NASDAQ slipping by 94.92 points, being 3.3%, 3.8% and 4.2% respectively. Plagued by uncertainty with regard to the financial sector, money poured into gold and crude oil futures, resulting in a sharp spike in oil prices, and further volatility in the market.

  • Wall Street Reshuffle Continues - 22 September 2008
  • Continuing with the extraordinary restructuring taking place on Wall Street, such as has not been seen since the Great Depression, the Federal Reserve confirmed on Sunday 21 September that it has approved the request received from the country’s remaining two major investment banks, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, to change their status to that of “bank holding companies”. Moreover, Barclays PLC has been given the go-ahead by a bankruptcy judge to acquire Lehman Brothers’ investment banking and trading business.

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