Black Monday and Tuesday: 21/22 Jan 2008

Is there a link between economy and 'culture'? Was punk, at least in part, a response to late seventies/ early eighties economic problems?

If it was, then maybe we are in for a punk revival...

Investors hit by volatile trading 18 minutes ago [Tuesday 22 January 2008: 11.26]

Investors are experiencing a roller-coaster ride after London's FTSE 100 Index swung wildly in volatile trading.

After a dramatic early 4% fall for London's leading shares following Monday's slump, the Footsie moved back into positive territory as bargain-hunters looked to snap up cheap stocks.
Heavy overnight losses in Asian markets triggered the early sell-off as fears over a US recession shook global exchanges.

But the Footsie - already trading in a 300-point range - could be set for further jolts when US markets open. On Monday, the Footsie lost £77 billion - its worst one-day fall since the 9/11 terror attacks in 2001. CMC Markets analyst James Hughes said: "It's crazy - it's hard to fathom what is going on. Sometimes when these things happen it is overdone, but the markets can't stand uncertainty and uncertainty is what we've got.

"People are sniffing around the carcasses trying to pick something up but whether they are brave enough to do that in any depth remains to be seen."


Mining firms remained among the Footsie's biggest casualties but banking stocks such as Lloyds TSB and Halifax Bank of Scotland clawed back earlier losses to move into positive territory.
The Footsie is currently 14% below its opening mark for 2008 in the worst trading start to a year since records began.

Markets across Europe also spiralled downward with the Footsie, with early falls seen on French and German exchanges. In Asia, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index closed nearly 9% lower - its worst performance in more than six years.