August 17, 2007
Shaky Market Prompts Calls For International Probe
Yet another day of extreme volatility in worldwide markets sent investors reeling again yesterday. In the U.S. alone, the Dow Jones plummeted 340 points only to rally in its final hour and finish essentially even with where it started; another roller-coaster ride is expected today. U.K. markets finished the day at their lowest level in nearly a year, and Asian markets are anticipating their biggest weekly fall in a decade.
This week, though, European countries are asking the international economic community to do something about it -- specifically, to figure out "whether conflicts of interest between credit-rating agencies and the banks they oversee contributed to the market slide that continued Thursday around the world," the Washington Post reports.
Leaders want an explanation for what they believe was an inadequate warning about problems with the U. S. subprime mortgage business, which triggered the recent jitters. And some American investors are looking toward the Federal Reserve to quiet the markets -- in the form of a cut in interest rates -- even before its scheduled Sept. 18 meeting.
AP and the New York Times have more information on the next steps for the world market.
