Trading at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) was suddenly halted around 11:32 a.m. Eastern Time because of what officials termed a “computer glitch.”
The market was down over 200 points (over 1%) at the time of the halt.
“We’re currently experiencing a technical issue that we’re working to resolve as quickly as possible,” Marissa Arnold, an NYSE spokeswoman, said in an e-mailed statement. “We will be providing further updates as soon as we can, and are doing our utmost to produce a swift resolution, communicate thoroughly and transparently, and ensure a timely and orderly market re-open.”
The Nasdaq reported to problems and said they continue to trade stocks that are listed on the NYSE.
“It’s been a little bit of a bumpy day. We had some technical problems even before the opening,” said Art Cashin, director of floor operations at the NYSE, in a CNBC interview.
“This will not cause a move in any particular direction, so I would kind of wait it out and see what happens,” he added.
The uncertainty about Greece and a massive selling of Chinese stocks were driving the market lower.
The Department of Homeland Security told CNN they found “no sign of malicious activity” at the stock exchange and no sign of a cyberattack.
Greece has until the end of the week.
That’s the message being sent by European leaders who are meeting to discuss the nation’s rejection of austerity measures and bailout terms to help the country out of their default to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The deadline comes after a heated meeting Tuesday among members of the European Union. If there is not an acceptable proposal on Sunday, Greece could be ejected from the Eurozone.
“The stark reality is that we only have five days to find the ultimate agreement,” said a visibly irritated Donald Tusk, the European Council president. “Until now I have avoided talking about deadlines. But tonight I have to say it loud and clear — the final deadline ends this week.”
“I’m strongly against Grexit (the nickname for a Greece exit from the Eurozone),” European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said. “But I can’t prevent it if the Greek government is not doing what we expect the Greek government to do.”
Greece’s Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras had told Greek voters if they rejected the referendum he could make a deal with Europe “within 48 hours.” That time limit passed without a formal proposal and only some comments from the nation’s new finance minister reading off handwritten notes.
French President Francois Hollande said that the European Central Bank (ECB) would likely provide money Wednesday to keep Greek banks afloat through Sunday.
Greek voters sent a firm “no” to the demands of European creditors when they voted by a 61-39% margin on Sunday’s referendum on austerity measures.
While the citizens of the country cheered, the rest of the world watched as the nation took steps closer to bankruptcy and bank failure. The banks in Greece had been shut down for the last week because of low balances and were only running because of emergency funds from the European Central Bank. ECB officials plan to meet Monday to see if they continue to prop up the banks and if so, for how long.
Voters told news outlets they were tired of the demands of creditors and that a rejection of tax increases and pension cuts was “a matter of national dignity” according to the New York Times.
The vote was also seen as a victory for Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, who ran on a campaign platform of rejecting new austerity measures. He claims that the vote was not a vote to “rupture” from Europe.
“I’m fully aware that the mandate that I was given (by voters) is not for a rupture with Europe, but a mandate boosting our negotiating strength for reaching a sustainable deal,” Tsipras said. “The people today replied to the right question. They did not answer to the question in or out of the euro. This question needs to be taken out of the discussion, once and for all.”
European observers say, however, it’s now likely Greece will be forced into bankruptcy and removal from the Euro. A possible expulsion from the European Union is now on the table.
Markets across the country saw tumbles due to the Greek rejection of the referendum. The only market that did not show a massive decline was China, because the Chinese government dumped a massive stimulus into the economy.
World oil prices are continuing a downhill slide amid fears the world economy is slowing and could go back into recession.
Brent crude oil fell to near four-year lows and the US standard, West Texas Intermediate, lost more than a dollar. Brent has lost almost 28 percent of its value since June.
The slide comes as economic news makes it appear the world is facing another slowdown or possible recession. China’s consumer inflation fell to a five-year low this week and prices for U.S. producers fell for the first time in a year.
Also, US crude oil inventories rose at a level almost four times higher than previously estimated by analysts.
The news led to downward rallies on Wall Street with the Dow losing hundreds.
World leaders from oil producing countries are calling for emergency meetings to try and stop the slide in oil prices. The International Energy Agency is cutting predictions for oil growth in 2015 as a result of the recent conditions.
John Shorey made the point that the middle class is disappearing in this country and we now have the very rich and those who are working two jobs at Walmart and McDonalds to make ends meet! John continued to read from Racing Towards Judgment, “God will judge this nation with economic disasters. Critical money problems will strike large and small cities alike.”
Then, David Wilkerson addresses the current issues of our day (in Racing Towards Judgment) that are in our news headlines with chilling accuracy; “There will be violence everywhere. Unheard of violence. Unbelievable violence. Unnecessary violence. Uncontrollable violence. The violence seething beneath the surface for years will explode.” They are saying today, this week, that crime is rising and even death. There is unrest in America, and when all this poverty hits and there is no food, it’s going to explode like crazy! If 50 million people suddenly did not receive their food stamp allocations, we will be seeing violence erupting in virtually every city in America. Continue reading →
For some time the world has been moving toward a cashless society. Soon, we are told, even checks will be a part of our economic history as more and more transactions will be done electronically. You know how this works; you probably pay many of your monthly bills now without ever taking a dollar out of your wallet or writing a check. Your computer is set to make the transaction for you in the right amount and on the proper date. It’s easy and convenient. After all, you could lose cash or misplace the checks. Even credit cards will soon be history. With increasing threats of identity theft, the world will be ready and willing to accept some way of maintaining control. All of your personal information, from your bank accounts to your medical records, will be computerized and stored online, perhaps in the cyberspace “cloud.” Continue reading →
Thousands of Venezuelan citizens attempted to have an “empty pots march” to the country’s food ministry Saturday in protest of chronic food shortages when military troops forced them to disburse at gunpoint.
The move by the military is the latest effort by the Maduro government to stop public opposition to his government.
Activists said over 5,000 people banged pots and blew horns as they marched toward the capital with banners pointing out massive shortages of flour, milk and toilet paper. In addition to the capital, similar protests were held in five other cities.
“There’s nothing to buy,” one of the marchers told The Guardian newspaper. “You can only buy what the government lets enter the country because everything is imported. There is no beef. There is no chicken.”
The food protests are the latest outcries against the Maduro government, which has allowed 56 percent inflation to remain unchecked and has done little to lower one of the world’s highest murder rates.
Officials with the Maduro government say that no protests are actually started by native Venezuelans, but are rather efforts of the United States, Panama and other nations to undermine the country’s socialist leadership.
A new study from the Defense Commissary Agency says that food stamp use by soldiers and their families has skyrocketed during the current administration.
The DCA report says that use of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program has more than tripled since 2008. In 2008, the amount of SNAP benefits used by troops was $31.1 million. At the end of fiscal year 2013, the amount used by troops had jumped to $103.6 million.
The report did show the rate of increase is slowing.
Pentagon officials interviewed by CNN said they do not track soldiers who are receiving assistance but that the troops using food stamps are likely those who are at the bottom of the ranks. Base pay for a new soldier with a spouse and child is about $20,000.
The amount given to soldiers is only a small amount of the $80 billion annually given out on the food stamp program.
Mark Hulbert, Editor of the Hulbert Financial Digest, warns that another Great Depression could happen soon.
According to Hulbert, the stock market parallels the behavior of the stock market before the 1929 crash. A chart comparing today’s market to the market of 1928-29 is making its rounds around Wall Street, and experts are frightened by what they see.
“…the market over the past two months has continued to more or less closely follow the 1928-29 pattern outlined in that two-months-ago chart. If this correlation continues, the market faces a particularly rough period later this month and in early March,” Hulbert wrote in his analysis of the stock market.
Although the markets’ correlation is uncanny, Tom McClellan of the McClellan Market Report, mentioned “…there is no guarantee that the market has to continue following through with every step of the 1929 pattern…” However, McClellan does believe there is reason for caution between now and May 2014.
With propane prices rising and temperatures falling, thousands of people in South Dakota are worried that they won’t be able to heat their homes.
“If you think about 57,000 households in South Dakota or about 70 percent of people in the state who use propane for heating, that’s a real impact on our state,” said Senator John Thune.
Senator Thune has been working hard for relief aid from the federal government, including sending a personal letter to President Obama.
Until federal aid arrives, the Red Cross has stepped in, providing residents in the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe with warm places to stay, hot meals, and extra supplies.
“…our concern was making sure they had a warm, safe place to be and that they had safe food to eat while they were waiting for the cold to break or to get propane resupplied at their homes,” said Dan Kuecker, the Disaster Program Manager for Western South Dakota for the American Red Cross.