The House of Representatives passed the $700 billion bailout package but the markets closed sharply lower with the Dow plunging 157 points to 10,325 as investors digested the loss of 159,000 jobs in September and grappled with the long term implications of the bailout plan. Nasdaq tumbled 29 points to 1947.
On the upside
Wachovia upgraded General Growth Properties (NYSE: GGP) from Underperform to Outperform.
Passage of the $700 billion bailout package by the House lifted shares of mortgage insurer Ambac Financial Group (NYSE: ABK).
Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS), which converted from an investment bank to a bank holding company last month, is considering a plan to trim its prime brokerage operation.
On the downside
Trucking company YRC Worldwide (Nasdaq: YRCW) tapped a credit line for $325 million in order to repay maturing notes.
A series of four auctions will be held on Monday to set the price of credit default swaps for Fannie Mae's (NYSE: FNM) and Freddie Mac's (NYSE: FRE) debt.
Longbow Research analyst Shawn M. Harrison cited disappointing consumer electronics sales for lowering his third quarter revenue and earnings guidance for Flextronics International (Nasdaq: FLEX).
In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of nearly 2 to 1 on the NYSE and by nearly 8 to 3 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks plunged 18 points to 619.
