More worries for European markets
European financial ministers had no reassurance over the weekend's G7 meeting that the U.S. dollar would climb out of its low standing against the euro. Megan Williams has more on the market climate overseas.
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Doug Krizner: Overseas stock markets are taking it on the chin. Aftershocks of Friday’s rout on Wall Street. The timing of the sell-off was interesting. The 20th anniversary of the ’87 crash, and the start of the weekend meeting of G7 ministers.
As Megan Williams reports from Rome, Europeans are worried the worst is yet to come.
Megan Williams: After Friday’s Wall Street slump and a 2.2 percent loss in the Tokyo market, European markets this morning are down.
Also worrisome for Europeans are signs that the housing market may now be softening for the first time in a decade. As a result of the subprime mortgage crisis, faith that people can repay loans is down, interest rates are up, and it’s tougher to get a mortgage.
The euro, instead, continues to reach record highs against the dollar. It’s now worth about $1.43 and a half.
European leaders at the G7 meeting in Washington over the weekend were hoping for some sign that the U.S. would try to bolster the low dollar, which is threatening European exports, but no reassurance came.
In Rome, I’m Megan Williams for Marketplace.