Wall St. faces record losses in last week of 2008

[kpete]

Source: Associated Press

Wall St. faces record losses in last week of 2008

By JOE BEL BRUNO – 3 hours ago

NEW YORK (AP) — Investors are preparing to close out the last three trading days of 2008 with Wall Street's worst performance since Herbert Hoover was president.

The ongoing recession and global economic shock pummeled stocks this year, with the Dow Jones industrial average slumping 36.2 percent. That's the biggest drop since 1931 when the Great Depression sent stocks reeling 40.6 percent.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index is set to record the biggest drop since its creation in 1957. The index of America's biggest companies is down 40.9 percent for the year.

With these statistics ready to play out this week, it is little wonder why investors are all too happy to close the books on 2008. Analysts are already looking toward January as a crucial period for the market as it tries to recover some of the $7.3 trillion wiped from the Dow Jones Wilshire 5000 index, the broadest measure of U.S. stocks.

Read more: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5ju0KuPIVUcs8asZpLJJ7XIeeMNzAD95C1B0O0