Hello traders!

In the US tonight, the Dow went into free-fall, closing down 387.18 points at
13,270.68.

The S&P500 was off 38.3 points to 1,458.98 and the Nasdaq Composite fell
49.42 points to 2,563.28.

See you in the morning with the next thrilling instalment....

G.

Director Dealings - Thursday 9 August 2007

Access Intelligence (ACC)Anglo American PLC (AAL)Anite Group PLC (AIE)Arena Leisure PLC (ARE)Aviva PLC (AV.)Aviva PLC (AV.)BRIT Ins Hldgs (BRE)Burberry Group PLC (BRBY)CamFunds Global Eq.Capita Group PLC (CPI)Chloride Group PLC (CHLD)City of London IT (CTY)DTZ Holdings PLC (DTZ)Evraz Group S.A. (EVR)Experian Group Ltd (EXPN)

Fidelity European (FEV)GlaxoSmithKline PLC (GSK)Grainger PLC (GRI)Grainger PLC (GRI)Invensys PLC (ISYS)Jardine Lloyd Thmpsn (JLT)Liberty Intl PLC (LII)London Capital Group (LCG)Marston's Plc (MARS)McBride PLC (MCB)Mid Wynd Inter Inv (MWY)Oxonica plc (OXN)Pace Micro Tech (PIC)Polar Cap Paragon 07Polar Cap. Discovery

Polar Cap. DiscoveryPolar Capital LotusPrudential PLC (PRU)RobertWisemanDairies (RWD)Royal Dutch Shell (RDSA)Schroder Inc Growth (SCF)Schroder UK Growth. (SDU)Schroder UK Growth. (SDU)Schroder UK Growth. (SDU)Scottish & Sthn.Engy (SSE)Senior PLC (SNR)Standard Chrtrd PLC (STAN)Standard Chrtrd PLC (STAN)Taylor Wimpey PLC (TW.)

Morning all. Market reports:

Telegraph
The Times
The Times (Need to know)
FT
The Guardian
The Independent
This is Money

Hedge funds at risk as black box strategies unravel

NIKKEI	AUSTRALIA	SHANGHAI	HANG SENG

OUTLOOK Old Mutual H1 profit seen down 4 pctOUTLOOK RBS shareholders seen approving ABN bid

TFN economic and business calendar

Good morning traders!

In Asia today, the Nikkei was recently down 411.47 points at 16,759.13, while the
Hang Seng was off 97.31 points at 22,439.36.

Crude oil for September delivery fell one cent to $71.58 a barrel, after slipping 56
cents to $71.59 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Thursday.

Happy Friday!

G.

Thomson Financial Europe AM at a glance share guide: Stocks plunge; oil mixed

TFN UK calendar and forecasts for today

London shares outlook - Sharply lower after New York dive on credit crunch woesThe Friday Press Roundup

BROKERWATCH Rio Tinto upgraded to 'buy' at Citigroup in aluminium sector reviewThomson Financial UK at a glance share guide

BROKERWATCH BAE Systems price target raised to 560p from 530 at Morgan Stanley

BROKERWATCH International Power target raised to 520p from 505 at Lehman Bros

Australian shares close 3-1/2 percent lower on credit market woes

UK smallcap opening - Aveva ticks up as Altium upgrades to 'buy'

UK smallcap opening - Helius Energy climbs on General Capital share purchaseUK smallcap opening - Renewable Energy hardens on Carnegie collaborationAustralian shares close 3-1/2 percent lower on credit market woes - UPDATE

Tokyo shares close sharply weaker on global plunge, Nikkei at 5-mth low - UPDATE

STOCKWATCH Old Mutual lower as H1 op profit misses forecastsUK smallcap opening - InTechnology up on in-line trading statement

BROKERWATCH Man Group upped to 'buy' from 'add' at EvolutionUK smallcap opening - Rok down on pre-interims profit-taking

STOCKWATCH ABN Amro down amid rumours that Barclays may withdraw - trader

STOCKWATCH Old Mutual lower as H1 op profit misses forecasts UPDATE

STOCKWATCH Unilever down; Goldman Sachs downgrade to 'sell'; tgt 1,434p

Good morning to you all                       

Well we have seen it all before for the last month or so

UK small caps open sharply lower with wider market

BROKERWATCH Biffa upgraded to 'neutral' from 'sell' at Merrill Lynch

Metals - LME inventory data (Friday)

Metals - Gold recovers after falling to one week low on credit crunch fears

London shares - mid-morning features

Metals - Base metals continue lower on fears of global credit crunch

Metals - Gold recovers after stumbling on credit crunch fears UPDATE

OUTLOOK InterContinental Hotels set to update on rooms target next week

STOCKWATCH Tesco and Morrison lower, DK cuts targets, reiterates 'add' ratingsMetals - Base metals continue lower on fears of global credit crunch UPDATE

US futures fall sharply

Madrid shares tumble midday on weak US futures amid global credit crunch woes

UK small caps extend losses at midday; Dobbies lower as Hunter walks from bidLondon shares - midday features

WALL STREET OUTLOOK - down again as credit crisis rolls on in global markets

Midday Market Roundup

Precious Metals Summary - London AM Fixings

OUTLOOK E.ON H1 figs seen up as Q1 gas ops strength offset weaker Q2

FOCUS ABN bid battle hits wobble as credit worries hint at wider M&A slowdown

London shares - midafternoon features

Metals - Gold turns higher as players bet on return of metal's safe haven status

OUTLOOK WPP to report strong interims

Precious Metals Summary - London PM Fixings

TFN economic and business calendar to Friday Aug 24

Metals - Base metals tumble on sub-prime woes; copper hits 6 week low

End-of-day Market Roundup

UK small caps close sharply lower, as global markets fall

        JOKE OF THE DAY

The 7 most important men in a woman's life

1. The Doctor -
who tells her to "take off all her clothes."

2. The Dentist -
who tells her to "open wide."

3. The Milkman -
who asks her "do you want it in the front or the back?"

4. The Hairdresser -
who asks her "do you want it teased or blown?"

5. The Interior Designer -
who assures her "once it's inside, you'll LOVE it!"

6. The Banker -
who insists to her "if you take it out too soon, you'll lose interest!"

7. The Primal Hunter -
who always goes deep into the bush, always shoots twice,
always eats what he shoots, but keeps telling her "Keep quiet and lie still!"

Director Dealings - Friday 10 August 2007

Access Intelligence (ACC)Africa OpportunityFd (AOF)Agora S.A. (AGOD)Agora S.A. (AGOD)Agora S.A. (AGOD)BAE SYSTEMS PLC (BA.)BP PLC (BP.)BP PLC (BP.)Barr(A.G.) PLC (BAG)Blue Planet Fin IT 1 (BPFA)British Airways PLC (BAY)Britvic plc (BVIC)Caledonia Inv PLC (CLDN)Chaucer Holdings PLC (CHU)Chemring Group PLC (CHG)Chloride Group PLC (CHLD)Diageo PLC (DGE)Elec.Data Process. (EDP)GKN PLC (GKN)

GeneralGlaxoSmithKline PLC (GSK)HBOS PLC (HBOS)HBOS PLC (HBOS)Highcroft Invs PLC (HCFT)Investec PLC (INVP)JSC Bank of Georgia (BGEO)Jardine Lloyd Thmpsn (JLT)Johnson Matthey PLC (JMAT)Kingston Comms(Hull) (KCOM)Lloyds TSB Group PLC (LLOY)Marks & Spencer Grp (MKS)Misys (MSY)Mothercare PLC (MTC)Mothercare PLC (MTC)Punch Taverns PLC (PUB)QinetiQ Group plc (QQ.)RAB Capital plc (RAB)

Safestore Hldgs PLC (SAFE)Safestore Hldgs PLC (SAFE)Safestore Hldgs PLC (SAFE)Safestore Hldgs PLC (SAFE)Safestore Hldgs PLC (SAFE)Safestore Hldgs PLC (SAFE)Safestore Hldgs PLC (SAFE)Safestore Hldgs PLC (SAFE)Sarantel Group PLC (SLG)Smith & Nephew Plc (SN.)Sports Direct Intl. (SPD)Taylor Wimpey PLC (TW.)Tesco PLC (TSCO)Topps Tiles (TPT)Travis Perkins PLC (TPK)Unilever PLC (ULVR)Union Resources LTD (URL)Vodafone Group Plc (VOD)

Friday's market reports:

Telegraph
The Times
The Times (Need to know)
FT
The Guardian
The Independent
This is Money

Panic selling by hedge funds has emerged as the hidden cause of the contagion spreading through the global financial system.

"In the last week people have had to meet margin calls by selling equity positions. The quant strats [quantitative funds] have been hit hardest and it's become a bit of a perfect storm. Prime brokerages are increasing margin requirements so you have a self--fulfilling prophecy and spiral down," said one senior banker.

"The black boxes [funds' computerised investment strategies] are all similar. They are getting completely crushed," added another.

It has also emerged that many funds had invested in the same companies, causing prices in otherwise unconnected companies to fall dramatically.

Hedge fund panic was behind global stock markets collapse

Among Warren Buffett's many timeless market aphorisms, one has stuck in my mind as particularly apt this weekend: "It's only when the tide goes out that you get to see who's been swimming with their trunks off."

Don't plunge back in until Warren says it's safe

CENTRAL BANKS are preparing to launch fresh interventions in money markets this week to avert a full-blown credit crisis after warnings by American analysts that up to $300 billion (148 billion) of loans could be at risk.

Rescue plan to stem market crisis

From their position high in the Eurotower, the skyscraper headquarters of the European Central Bank (ECB) in the heart of Frankfurt, staff keep a close eye on what is happening in the money markets around Europe. On Thursday, the market-operations division noticed that something very unusual was going on. Liquidity appeared to have dried up, and interest rates were soaring.

Panic on Wall Street

Investors are braced for another white-knuckle ride on the markets this week as the fallout from the American sub-prime mortgage crunch starts to claim fresh victims.

US loan crisis set to claim fresh victims

Share prices in freefall, slaughter in Surrey, flood damage costed in the billions, a slowing housing market and a subdued high street. And yet amid all this gloom there is talk of a sixth interest rate rise in 13 months.

Why yet another rise in interest rates will slaughter us