US Crisis: NYSE to stay closed today

Hopes of a start back to normality put on hold...

The New York stock exchange will stay closed today, scotching rumours that the US financial machine would start to resume normal trading. The US bond market will reopen, following the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. Despite pressure from the White House investment banks said they were not ready to resume trading equities, the Financial Times reports. Of the merchant banks affected, the headquarters of Merrill Lynch and Lehman Brothers situated close by the now devastated World Trade Center are still empty. The news that the markets will not reopen will come as a disappointment to two high profile tech companies. Oracle and Adobe were both scheduled to post positive quarterly reports today and even if they do actually publish results, they will miss out on the good news reflecting on their already badly deflated share prices. Richard Grasso, chairman of the NYSE, said equities trading might begin again tomorrow and no later than Monday. After three days of inactivity, this is the longest period of closure for the exchange since the Great Depression of the 1930s.