Europe shares slump 8 pct; banks, energy stocks fall

Reuters ^ | 10/24/08

[TigerLikesRooster]

Europe shares slump 8 pct; banks, energy stocks fall

Fri Oct 24, 2008 7:35am EDT

* FTSEurofirst 300 slumps 8 pct

* Fears credit crisis more widespread

* Banks, energy stocks lead losers

By Joanne Frearson

LONDON, Oct 24 (Reuters) - European shares fell 8 percent as investors fear the credit crunch is starting to spill over into the emerging markets and company earnings deteriorate.

By 1106 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was down 8 percent at 802.9 points, having fallen to a day's low of 787.29 and hitting its lowest level since April 2003.

"Equities have crashed. There is a fear the credit crunch has swung from banks to sovereign nations and there is a belief there is only a matter of time before countries start going bust and defaulting on debt," said Jim Wood-Smith, head of research at Williams de Broe.

"There is a flight to the two perceived safe currencies to the dollar and the yen. There is a state of general panic. We are in a self feeding bear market with all news deemed to be bad news," added Wood-Smith.

[TigerLikesRooster]

Euros are shooting for magic 10 (10% drop.)

[TigerLikesRooster]

Ping!

[edcoil]

Everyone needs to stop being manipulated. Look at oil and how they controlled the masses running it up and now look. Everyone needs to just sit tight and do nothing until after the election.

[JasonC]

All the developing countries are dramatically weaker than first world banks, and they all go smash.

If a banker in New York can't borrow money at less than double digit rates, nothing else on the planet, outside the US and Japan and western Europe, is worth a damn.

[conservative cat]

Going to check this thread more later. I have a trip to Europe planned for December, so I have been watching the euro rate like a hawk.

[edcoil]

But was it ever? Isn’t that what makes a first world vs third world.

The only revenue to the third world had was the government taking our money and giving it to them for nothing and their corrupt governments and officials took it and never helped the people.

I am unaware of any “foreign aid” that has helped the American tax payer.

[Sig Sauer P220]

Remain calm! All is well, All is WELL!

[JasonC]

No, they are also primary commodity producers on a large scale.

They made out like bandits on the commodity bubble. Ags, coffee, cocoa, rubber, oil, metals, all of it was moonshot stuff over the 2005 to 2008 period.

All unsupported by new money chasing it, so those prices just crushed demand and where possible, ramped up supply.

Long run there is nothing wrong with Brazil or South Korea or India as emerging economies. But the financing, ooh, that was a failure!

[B4Ranch]

Actually you can help the most by continuing to spend money in your local businesses. That’s where it will do the most good, saving your neighbors from losing their jobs.

[Ken H]

But the financing, ooh, that was a failure!

Just curious - was that a nod to Lt. Handcock's limerick in "Breaker Morant"?

[dfwgator]

There once was a man from Australia
Who painted his a$$ like a dahlia
The color was fine
and likewise the design,
but the aroma -whew!- that was the failure.

[GOPJ]

Thanks for the ping.

[JasonC]

Of course...