Hello traders!

In the US tonight, the Dow was down 120.96 points at 13,110.05, while the
S&P500 slipped 19.43 points to 1,451.15 and the Nasdaq Composite was off
25.81 points at 2,618.51.

See you in the morning with the latest....

G.

Morning all. Market reports:

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

Households have been told to prepare themselves for a major "Christmas crunch" after London's money markets suffered the biggest freeze since August's credit crisis. Borrowing costs in London and Wall Street have shot up to two-month highs, as banks stopped lending to each other amid fears that the financial sector is heading for a dive.
Market freeze to sour festivities

Britains banking sector was yesterday thrown into fresh turmoil as lending rates rose sharply amid fears that another bank had sought emergency funding from the Bank of England. Shares in Britains banks plunged despite a statement from Barclays that its exposure to the sub-prime crisis was far lower than had been feared.
Fresh turmoil on fear of new bank seeking emergency aid

An American judge has prevented Deutsche Bank from repossessing 14 homes because the bank could not prove it owned the defaulting mortgages involved. The ruling by Ohio district court judge Christopher Boyko could have serious repercussions for banks and mortgage lenders, for whom the pooling of mortgage securities is a $6,500bn (3,200bn) industry.
Deutsche Bank in ownership court row

Two of the buyout industry's global heavyweights painted an upbeat picture of their deal pipelines yesterday, insisting that "life was returning" to the congested leveraged debt markets in the US and Europe.
Buyout giants see signs of a recovery

Shoppers are becoming a little less ready to spend, according to the latest snapshot of Britain's high streets. Retail sales fell unexpectedly during October for the first time in nine months and were down by 0.1 per cent, the Office for National Statistics reported yesterday. And retail sales growth between August and September was also revised lower from 0.6 to 0.3 per cent month-on-month.
Unexpected fall in retail sales in October adds to high street worries

Oil could reach $150 a barrel and needs a new system of pricing that would take the power out of the hands of financial speculators, Opec delegates at a special summit in Saudi Arabia were told today.
Oil price could hit $150 a barrel

The era of 'peak gold' has arrived. Try as they might, miners cannot find enough ore at viable costs to replace their fast-depleting reserves, even if they dig miles into the centre of the earth. There's not much gold out there," said Gregory Wilkins, chief executive of top producer Barrick Gold.
A perfect storm for gold as mines left empty

NIKKEI	AUSTRALIA	SHANGHAI	HANG SENG

OUTLOOK Richemont seen posting strong H1 results, focus on profitabilityTFN economic and business calendarAustralian shares close lower amid expectations of further falls on Wall St

Good morning traders!

In Asia today, the Nikkei closed down 241.69 points at 15,154.61, while the Hang
Seng ended the morning down 1,112.30 points at 27,638.91.

New York's main oil futures contract, light sweet crude for December delivery, was
9 cents higher at $93.52 per barrel. The contract slipped 66 cents to close at
$93.43 a barrel in New York trades on Thursday.

Happy Friday!

G.

Australian shares close lower on expectations of further falls on Wall St UPDATE

TFN UK calendar and forecasts for today

Tokyo shares close lower on stronger yen, US economic concerns

BROKERWATCH Near-term oil price forecasts raised at Deutsche Bank; ups EPS tgts

London shares outlook - lower taking lead from Asia following NY's fall

BROKERWATCH Centrica initiated as a 'sell' at SG Securities; target 305p

BROKERWATCH AB Foods cut to 'sell' from 'hold' at Citigroup

Thomson Financial UK at a glance share guide

BROKERWATCH British Land cut to 'equal-weight' at Lehman BrothersFOCUS GSK obesity pills in the spotlight after sceptical BMJ studyTokyo shares close lower on stronger yen, US economic concerns - UPDATE

BROKERWATCH Venture Production upped to 'buy' from 'hold' in Deutsche E&P reviewBROKERWATCH Lonmin cut to 'underweight' vs 'equal-weight' by Lehman Brothers

BROKERWATCH Ladbrokes upgraded to 'buy' from 'hold' at LandsbankiUK smallcap opening - Lithic Metals rises on uranium find at Mvula prospect

FOCUS Iberia new suitor Gala heats up M&A angle, but no white knight vs TPGUK smallcap opening - Panmure Gordon higher on stakebuilding rumour

UK smallcap opening - Provexis ticks up on Coca-Cola agreement

BROKERWATCH Heineken cut to 'reduce' from 'hold' at SNS; tgt 42 eur vs 47.50UK smallcap opening - Nautical Petroleum advances on North Sea oil find

BROKERWATCH Novartis upped to 'buy' at ABN Amro in pharma sector noteUK smallcap opening - Aero Inventory up on Canadian contractSTOCKWATCH UCB falls more than 8 pct in opening trade on Cimzia setback