
The head of failed United States investment bank Lehman Brothers told Congress on Monday that he took home about 300 million US dollars in pay and bonuses over the past eight years.

Latin American stocks plunged Monday, led by a stunning 15% intraday drop in Brazilian shares, on concern about a world recession that could devastate the region's commodities-based economies.

Wall Street's Dow Jones Industrial Average fell as much as 800 points to trade below the 10,000 mark Monday as nervousness over the credit crisis spread after the US government's 700 billion USD bailout and interventions in Europe only seemed to add to investor anxiety.

Asian stock markets early Tuesday opened down sharply amid investor panic that global government action might not be enough to stem the financial crisis.

Faced with worst economic and financial market crisis since 1929, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Tuesday sent a strong signal that officials may lower interest rates against a backdrop of waning price pressures.
The Chilean economy experienced an unexpected trade deficit in September, the first negative month in six years according to the latest release from the Central Bank. The misbalance was 318 million US dollars; a year ago it was a surplus of 1.37 billion US dollars.

Australia's central bank surprised financial market by cutting its key interest rate a full percentage point from 7% to 6%. The bank said the sharp cut was justified given the prospects for growth, even though inflation is currently above target.

Neel Kashkari, 35, a United States Assistant Secretary of the Treasury, was named on Tuesday interim head of the Office of Financial Stability by US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson. The office will run the 700 billion US dollars financial bailout program signed into law Friday.

British government attempts to tackle rising energy bills were accused of being in meltdown as the latest figures showed a million more households slipped into fuel poverty in 2006.

Germany offered a blanket bank deposit guarantee on Sunday in a bid to contain the spreading credit crisis as European officials clinched deals to rescue Germany's Hypo Real Estate and recapitalize two other European banks.