FOREX TRADERS

[ultimatepick]

22:04 FOREX: White House & Treasury Watching Markets San Francisco, February 27. Traders note that the White House and Treasury are watching the markets after the DJIA closed over 400 pts lower. The White House spokesman stated earlier this afternoon that the US economy is fundamentally sound. Dow Jones reports that the Treasury is continuing its monitoring of the markets, as it regularly does. Traders now wonder if talk of the Plunge Protection Team will re-emerge with reports late last year that Treasury Paulson has re-assembled a market watching team that meets quite regularly. Buzz words are already circulating in Asia with traders looking for stories of margin calls and hedge fund losses to emerge. Only last week, the press reported that margin debt hit a record $285.6 bln in January and the highest since March 2000 before a two-year stock decline. This has only added to market angst. USD/JPY is at 117.93 and EUR/USD at 1.3239. [e-mail]