Stocks Fall on Weak Economic Data, Bhutto Assassination
Stocks declined on Thursday as investors were hit with weak economic data, news of further write-downs by financial firms, and the death of Benazir Bhutto in Pakistan.
The former Pakistani prime minister and opposition leader Benazir Bhutto was killed at a campaign rally in Rawalpindi. She was widely seen as the favorite to win next month’s election and promised to restore democracy in the troubled country. The incident took place just before U.S. markets opened and sent stock futures lower, while bonds, gold and oil moved higher.
Goldman Sachs
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PowerRating) forecast Q4 write-downs will be bigger at Citigroup
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PowerRating), Merrill Lynch
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PowerRating) (read more).
Sallie Mae
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Fitch Ratings placed 87 residential mortgage backed securities insured by MBIA
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PowerRating) on “Rating Watch Negative” (read more).
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