STORMY: Roiled by bad news from the real estate and financial sectors, a struggling US dollar and record high oil prices, Wall Street is pinning its hopes on a Fed rate cut
A horrific week on Wall Street has put the bears in command as the market braces for more bleak news from the US housing front and earnings that may show how companies are weathering the storm.

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OUT: Matt Ridley, whom many blame for the British company's recent woes, says nobody could have foreseen the market shutdown that created all the difficulties
Northern Rock PLC said on Friday it was replacing its chairman, after two months of troubles during which the mortgage lender took emergency funding from the Bank of England and saw the first run on a British bank in nearly a century. Its shares fell more than 8 percent.

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TAKING A BREATHER: The TAIEX traded in a narrow band on Friday as strong global earnings reports failed to lift the broader market, despite gains in select technology stocks
Asian stocks had their biggest weekly drop in two months, led by financial companies, on concern losses from the worst US housing slump since 1991 will spread.

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Crude oil may fall after hitting a record of more than US$90 a barrel, a report by analysts at Morgan Stanley said.

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The weakened US dollar tumbled further on Friday on foreign exchange markets, sinking to another record low against the euro, as G7 finance chiefs met for talks in Washington.

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The world's top finance leaders said on Friday that order was returning to financial markets but warned of lingering instability likely to dampen world economic growth as they turned up the heat on China to ease its currency restrictions.

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European share prices closed lower again on Friday, extending losses amid persistent concerns about the impact record oil prices and a stronger euro will have on the economic outlook, dealers said.

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Malaysia's ringgit led a rally in Asian currencies on optimism the central bank will allow faster gains to tackle inflation after oil prices climbed to a record. The Philippine peso fell after an explosion at a shopping mall.

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Citigroup Inc confirmed on Friday it had secured enough funding to cover the US$80 billion in assets held in its structured investment vehicles (SIV) -- at least until the end of the year.

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Uganda's finance minister wanted to give more than 90 percent of the population of his homeland access to the banking system and financial services to try to spur economic growth, especially in poor rural areas. But his government did not have the know-how or the money to do it.

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UPWARDS: As leading mobile phone makers report positive numbers this month, a report says handset shipments may rise 20 percent next year
Mobile phone shipments worldwide will probably increase more than expected this year, fueled by sales of Nokia Oyj's handsets and demand from China and India, JPMorgan Chase & Co said.

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