Market down US$500 billion

One year on from the start of the current subprime mortgage and it’s more bad news from Wall Street. Yesterday saw US investment bank JP Morgan Chase write down almost US$2 billion, adding to the US$500 billion global cost of the mortgage meltdown.

According to New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, some companies’ losses are enough to ensure they need not pay tax for years to come.
 
Australian shares lifted a little due to mining stocks and news from China that inflation had dropped. However, the Australian dollar continues to fall against the major currencies, trading at 87.26 US cents this morning.