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Snips from the WSJ article:
WASHINGTON -- Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner promised forceful action to get credit flowing again in the economy, but the lack of detail in his much-anticipated speech helped drive stocks down nearly 5%, the worst selloff since President Barack Obama assumed office.
The Treasury could find itself back on Capitol Hill at some point seeking more financial-rescue funds. Officials said they have enough for the time being, but didn't rule out asking for more.
Said Ethan Harris, chief U.S. economist at Barclays Capital: "This is the shock and ugh plan."
At a meeting of the American Securitization Forum in Las Vegas, a crowd of about 50 people abandoned their breakfasts to watch Mr. Geithner's speech on TV, some snickering as the stock market began to fall. At the 4 p.m. market close, the Dow Industrials were down 381.99 points, or 4.6%, at 7888.88. The S&P 500 was down 4.9%.
"We understood that some might be disappointed that we didn't announce a large bailout program," said a Treasury spokeswoman, Stephanie Cutter. "But our focus is on what will be the best comprehensive plan to protect taxpayer dollars, jump-start lending and bring forth a long-term financial recovery, not the hour-by-hour movement of the markets or a particular company's stock on any given day."
"As you know, this is enormously complicated," Mr. Geithner told CNBC. "We're being exceptionally careful that the taxpayer is being protected, that we're taking risks we understand, and that we're using these resources in a way that's going to give the maximum benefit in getting these markets going again."
Interesting chart showing hour by hour reaction to the announcements.
WASHINGTON -- Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner promised forceful action to get credit flowing again in the economy, but the lack of detail in his much-anticipated speech helped drive stocks down nearly 5%, the worst selloff since President Barack Obama assumed office.
The Treasury could find itself back on Capitol Hill at some point seeking more financial-rescue funds. Officials said they have enough for the time being, but didn't rule out asking for more.
Said Ethan Harris, chief U.S. economist at Barclays Capital: "This is the shock and ugh plan."
At a meeting of the American Securitization Forum in Las Vegas, a crowd of about 50 people abandoned their breakfasts to watch Mr. Geithner's speech on TV, some snickering as the stock market began to fall. At the 4 p.m. market close, the Dow Industrials were down 381.99 points, or 4.6%, at 7888.88. The S&P 500 was down 4.9%.
"We understood that some might be disappointed that we didn't announce a large bailout program," said a Treasury spokeswoman, Stephanie Cutter. "But our focus is on what will be the best comprehensive plan to protect taxpayer dollars, jump-start lending and bring forth a long-term financial recovery, not the hour-by-hour movement of the markets or a particular company's stock on any given day."
"As you know, this is enormously complicated," Mr. Geithner told CNBC. "We're being exceptionally careful that the taxpayer is being protected, that we're taking risks we understand, and that we're using these resources in a way that's going to give the maximum benefit in getting these markets going again."
Interesting chart showing hour by hour reaction to the announcements.
