Dow falls more than 600 points; markets in free-fall

[Dan]

The Dow Jones industrials fell under 9,000 this afternoon for the first time since the summer of 2003 as investor confidence that markets would stabilize appeared to collapse. At 3:40 p.m. ET, the blue chips were down 641 points, or 6.9%, to 8,617. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was off 74 points, or 7.5% to 911. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 94 points, or 5.4%, to 1,646. The S&P fell under a closely monitored support level of 960. A support level is important because it is supposed to trigger new buying. At those levels, the crash of 2008 has left the Dow 39% below its record close of 14,164.53 and the S&P 500 down 41% from its record close of 1,565.15. Ironically, both records were set exactly one year ago today.

*What happened to the $700 Billion Bailout Solution?! I really thought it would be the panacea for all our financial woes...

[briann]

I hope it kinda stabilizes between now and Nov. 4rth.   But the worst is yet to come.

Brian

[cjd]

The bailout was for China. Investors here in America will see their portfolios dwindle because thats how the system will make up the shortfall. As usual the people who lived high on the hog with other peoples money are the ones that can sit back and smile through all this. The enjoyed themselves living on borrowed money that they never could pay back. The careful investor is going to get it where the sun don't shine once again. The bottom is very far off and it will be years until any recovery comes close to restoring whats lost. GM and Ford as well as a good many other companies will be gone this time next year. If Obama gains office things will be even worse because of his proposed taxes on capital gains. Anyone with a few bucks in the bank should spend carefully that may be the only thing that will get them over the rough times ahead.

[P J C]

I bet the Dems are going to just throw more money at the problem, and hopes it goes away.

[Dr. Dan]

This might help the dollar actually...outside countries might not want to invest in the US and it might give Americans the opportunity to invest in their own country...

also sold my stocks today before the continued downfall...  We're headed for tough times..it just hasn't stabalized yet.

[Dan]

The bailout was for China. Investors here in America will see their portfolios dwindle because thats how the system will make up the shortfall. As usual the people who lived high on the hog with other peoples money are the ones that can sit back and smile through all this. The enjoyed themselves living on borrowed money that they never could pay back. The careful investor is going to get it where the sun don't shine once again. The bottom is very far off and it will be years until any recovery comes close to restoring whats lost. GM and Ford as well as a good many other companies will be gone this time next year. If Obama gains office things will be even worse because of his proposed taxes on capital gains. Anyone with a few bucks in the bank should spend carefully that may be the only thing that will get them over the rough times ahead.

Thanks CJD,
   you insight into this arena is much appreciated because I know little when it come to the backroom deals that go on in Washington...
 

[P J C]

This might help the dollar actually...outside countries might not want to invest in the US and it might give Americans the opportunity to invest in their own country...

also sold my stocks today before the continued downfall...  We're headed for tough times..it just hasn't stabalized yet.

I think you should keep your stocks in annd try and ride this out. Unless you are relying on your stock money.

[Dr. Dan]

This might help the dollar actually...outside countries might not want to invest in the US and it might give Americans the opportunity to invest in their own country...

also sold my stocks today before the continued downfall...  We're headed for tough times..it just hasn't stabalized yet.

I think you should keep your stocks in annd try and ride this out. Unless you are relying on your stock money.

I see things falling and staying low for awhile..My strategy is to sell after the market goes up slightly and then put a limit buy at a bottom point and keep an eye on things for the next 60-90 days...Let's see what happens.

I thought about riding it out..but I think with these astronomical losses, it's not worth it...A few of these stocks might never recover.

[briann]

This might help the dollar actually...outside countries might not want to invest in the US and it might give Americans the opportunity to invest in their own country...

What???  Thats not how things work.   If investors pull out of the US it kills the US dollar.... and it doesnt somehow magically make domestic investors want to invest in the US either.  However.. there is no where else to put your money.  All countries are in a free fall.  And therefore... the US dollar hasn't really even been affected by this, and is actually gaining on European currencies.  BTW... other countries are getting hit even harder than ours.

[Dan]

This might help the dollar actually...outside countries might not want to invest in the US and it might give Americans the opportunity to invest in their own country...

What???  Thats not how things work.   If investors pull out of the US it kills the US dollar.... and it doesnt somehow magically make domestic investors want to invest in the US either.  However.. there is no where else to put your money.  All countries are in a free fall.  And therefore... the US dollar hasn't really even been affected by this, and is actually gaining on European currencies.  BTW... other countries are getting hit even harder than ours.

I hope so... The Evil European Union should be feeling the brunt of this pretty soon!
  This type of chaos should make new nations wherry on joining the EU, and the Muslim world should be gasping for air anytime now that American are ALL on top of the Transfer of wealth that has been occurring for the past 2 decades. This must STOP NOW!

[briann]

This might help the dollar actually...outside countries might not want to invest in the US and it might give Americans the opportunity to invest in their own country...

What???  Thats not how things work.   If investors pull out of the US it kills the US dollar.... and it doesnt somehow magically make domestic investors want to invest in the US either.  However.. there is no where else to put your money.  All countries are in a free fall.  And therefore... the US dollar hasn't really even been affected by this, and is actually gaining on European currencies.  BTW... other countries are getting hit even harder than ours.

I hope so... The Evil European Union should be feeling the brunt of this pretty soon!
  This type of chaos should make new nations wherry on joining the EU, and the Muslim world should be gasping for air anytime now that American are ALL on top of the Transfer of wealth that has been occurring for the past 2 decades. This must STOP NOW!

Thats a good point.   There is a possibility, that the EU could fall apart.   The Europeans may rise against this unholy union, and pull out.

[Dr. Dan]

This might help the dollar actually...outside countries might not want to invest in the US and it might give Americans the opportunity to invest in their own country...

What???  Thats not how things work.   If investors pull out of the US it kills the US dollar.... and it doesnt somehow magically make domestic investors want to invest in the US either.  However.. there is no where else to put your money.  All countries are in a free fall.  And therefore... the US dollar hasn't really even been affected by this, and is actually gaining on European currencies.  BTW... other countries are getting hit even harder than ours.

Allow me to explain myself.  Since the US was weaker probably due to the war with all the debt they had, other countries were relatively stronger.  Now that everybody is falling, the economically stronger nations are falling harder than the US. So yes, because of that the dollar is beginning to have a little more value than the other nations' currencies.  For non-investors, or for those who got out of the market much earlier than this fall, have that opportunity bring about a new order...the problem here is that China and Russia are the two nations with all that money...so the new order my end up being socialism/communism...If Hollywood people weren't so dumb, they could also end up having a stake in the new order. Good thing they aren't. We are headed to scary times...

yeh i know i'm not an economist...that's why I have you, Briann, to correct me.

[cjd]

I said it some time ago when people were saying that America was in trouble financially the rest  of the world will follow right along. Some folks here though that America would go down the cliff on its own. What most folks don't realize is that America's economy seeds all the others even our wost enemies. As bad as things seem for us here in America I think they will be far worse for other countries. I think countries like China, South Korea and Japan will be facing larger problems because people will no longer buying up all the cheap cr-p the have been flooding our markets with for years. I think this financial situation will cause a great many companies to rethink their overseas operations and start producing things back at home.