Posted on 10/24/2008 4:32:57 AM PDT by Sub-Driver
Stock futures freeze as tumble worsens Fri Oct 24, 2008 7:17am EDT
LONDON (Reuters) - Stock index futures tumbled so sharply in European trade on Friday, they had to be frozen at several points in the morning.
By 6:27 a.m. EDT December Dow Jones futures were down 6.2 percent, Standard & Poor's 500 futures were off 6.6 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures were down 6.6 percent.
All three contracts lost the maximum amount permissible before the start of futures trading in the United States.
"We are in a panic mode, I don't know how else to describe it and when you're in panic mode, all rational thought goes out of the window," said City Index chief market strategist Tom Hougaard.
"We've just got to let this thing rage. I think we'll see the Dow below 8,000 today."
According to Reuters data, December S&P futures hit a low of 855.20, while Dow Jones futures touched a low of 8,224 -- the lowest levels at which both contracts could trade in a session.
Jeremy Hughes, a spokesman for the Chicago Mercantile Exchange in London, said both contracts were "limit down."
"The limit is calculated at roughly 5 percent down. At that point it can't go any further down but it is still accessible and can go up again," he said.
(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...
Wow. Thy’ll stop at nothing to get Obama across the finish line.
Mindless panic may lead to electing authoritarians speaking reassuring words while wearing well tailored suits (or uniforms)
Historically, didn’t the financial ruin of Germany help usher in “change” in the 1920’s?
I think it may be accurate to say that the markets are realizing that others are stopping at nothing to get Obama across the finish line. The fools who follow Hussein-O may not be able/willing to see the edge of the cliff, but plenty of others are trying to jump out of the car before it clears the rim of the canyon.
Mr. niteowl77
Okay, this is incredibly bad.
This is a John Galt moment.
Many professional investors are afraid the rules will be stacked so they can do nothing but lose, so they've decided that they don't want to play.
Yes and when Obama is crushed in 2 weeks, the market rallies 20% in one day. This country will not have a president with the middle name “Hussein” any time soon.
Actually I’d be very surprised if the market didn’t sell off in the first half of November no matter who wins. McCain’s anti-capitalist rhetoric hasn’t made him a ton of friends on wall street.
No it's the opposite! The markets, I.E. investors and businesses, are scared to death of Obama and the RAT congress running everything.
And just how is "Corporations should pay lower taxes" anti-capitalist ??! It is not.
Bingo. This is right out of Karl Marx’s manifesto.
I think what your seeing though is not a conspiracy by Soros or anything like that, its just rational people reacting to irrational times. But it creates and environment that welcomes Communists and opportunists. I think the market will bottom at about 7000 even. But I’m not getting back in either way until the election is held. If Obama gets elected, you will see a short spike upwards followed by another major dip over the next 5 or 6 months. 5000?
This is a John Galt moment.
I'm betting big that way.
Everything is in free fall. Gold below 700, Silver below 9, Oil getting close to 60, Asia Stock Down Up to 11 % today, Europe down up to 9 % and US Futures looking bad for later today. Yikes. We must be in a twilight zone episode or something. This is obviously a global phenomenon.
This is the prelude folks.
Deflationary crisis. Except no one has the cash to buy things at the lower prices.
One could say,the carbon tax he wants impose on business' is anti capitalist,couldn't they?He and Lieberman led the charge in 2003 to reduce greenhouse gases and wanted to make business' pay for the carbon they emit.
I’m with you. I’ve been buying all the way down. Look at the Palin rallies- they’re huge. We’re seeing a massive wave of support which is going on below the radar, and of course it is being unreported by the biased media. McCain wins 54-46.
Where is all of the cash? Who is holding all of the money and where are they keeping it? Is all in bonds or cash accounts? When the investors are selling their stocks, funds and commodities, where are are they putting their money? In banks, only to fail there?
there's a difference?
And Wall Street is now a friend of Joe the Plumber????
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.