Shares pummelled, dollar slumps as rout gathers pace

[dipsydoodle]

Source: Reuters

(Reuters) - World stocks were pummelled and the dollar slumped on Thursday as a sell-off on global financial markets in thrall to central bank stimulus accelerated.

European shares fell sharply at the open, dropping 1.3 percent after the second biggest fall in Japan's Nikkei in over two years left Asian shares at their lowest level of the year.

Heavy selling hit the dollar, which slumped 2 percent against the yen as investors spooked by the plummeting Japanese stock market unwound hedges. It fell as low as 93.90 yen, its lowest since April 4 and giving up most of the gains made since the Bank of Japan's aggressive monetary easing announced on that day.

The U.S. currency dropped to a 3-1/2 month low against the euro with the common currency buying $1.3385.

Read more: http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/06/13/uk-markets-global-idUKBRE87514J20130613

[Demeter]

1. As we said in the 60's

Burn, baby, burn!

[Danmel]

2. why the glee

I would like to retire before i die.

[Kelvin Mace]

3. Well, I think those days are offically over

I expect I will be working until the hearse arrives.

[Ash_F]

6. I wouldn't blame the dollar if you can't /nt

[we can do it]

8. Me too. Most people's retirement accounts and pensions are in the stock market.

But hey, why let a little thing like facts get in the way.

[Demeter]

4. There was no glee in the 60's, and none now

It's called Retribution. And a lot of innocents were hurt, and will be hurt, as the failings of the Rich and Powerful are weighed in the scale of Justice, and a balance struck.

[KurtNYC]

5. do you think the pension funds invested in the stock market are those of the

"Rich and Powerful" ? The most profitable companies in America are NOT publicly traded -- PWC for example, not public.

As we market timers said in the 20th Century: "Sell in May and go away." (until Oct or Nov)

[blkmusclmachine]

7. .

.

[Swede Atlanta]

9. This drop is not unexpected and is in fact overdue......

If economists were willing to be very honest they would tell us that the economic fundamentals do not support a sizzling equities market.

Corporate profits have been high mostly because companies have shifted production to low-cost markets such as China and India or have moved operations to "right to work" states that make union organization much more difficult and suppresses wages and benefits. They have laid off workers and have been slow to re-hire.

So with significantly lower costs it is not surprising profits have soared.

But we still have a very shaky labor market both here and abroad. We have way too many people either out of work or underemployed.

As well much of the run-up in the market has been by institutional investors and average Americans that are now investing in the market as 401K plans have returned and the economy has slowly improved.

I wouldn't be surprised to see a correction of 8-12% which would essentially wipe out the gains of 2013.

[Kolesar]

10. U.S. stocks glide higher

http://money.cnn.com/2013/06/13/investing/stocks-markets/index.html?iid=mkt_SF_news

The Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500, and the Nasdaq started the day with modest losses. But all three indexes quickly turned higher following two better-than-expected U.S. economic reports.

By early afternoon, the major indexes were up roughly 0.6%.