Tony G Financial Report

The major stock averages lost heart in late trading and finished on the down side once again. Light volume exaggerated volatility. The Dow traded in a 400-point range. Nervousness about a possible global recession remained the dominant theme, but the implementation of a U.S. bailout plan gave regional banks a boost, and a surprising sales report supported housing stocks. Homebuilders cut inventories at a record pace in September. Dow component Verizon was a nice story. The company reported subscribers grew more than expected. This translated to the stock’s best day in eight years. The shares were up 2.53 to 27.61. CenturyTel lost 3.92 to 25.62 after it agreed to buy Embarq for $5.8 billion in stock. Embarq rose 64 cents to 30.38. Interest rates were in the spotlight. The president of the European Central Bank gave a strong hint of a cut next week. The Federal Reserve discusses rates at its two-day meeting tomorrow. The Dow closed down 203 at 8175. NYSE volume totaled 1.33 billion shares. The S&P 500 lost 27 points. The Nasdaq fell 46. Declining issues beat advancers by 4-1 on the NYSE and by 3-1 on the Nasdaq. The 10-year Treasury was down 5/32 to yield 3.70%.