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US sharemarkets fell on Monday, with all indexes dipping around 1.5 percent as shares government-backed lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac plunged over continued financial sector concerns.
At the close of trading, the Dow Jones industrial average lost 180.51 points, or 1.55 percent, to close at 11,479.39, while the broader Standard & Poor's 500 index lost 19.60 points, or 1.51 percent, to close at 1,278.60.
The technology-based Nasdaq composite lost 35.54 points, or 1.45 percent, to close at 2,416.98.
Shares in Fannie Mae tumbled 22.25 percent to a 20 year low of US$6.15, while shares in Freddie Mac fell 24.96 percent to US$4.39, a more than 17-year low.
Other financial stocks also fared badly, with Lehman Brothers' shares dropping by seven percent in response to a Wall Street article predicting a big third-quarter loss for the global financier.
The price of oil fell 90 US cents on the New York Mercantile Exchange to settle at US$112.87 a barrel, a three-and-a-half month low.
In currency trading, the dollar fell against the euro and the yen, while the price of gold rose US$13.40 to be worth US$801.80 an ounce on the COMEX index.
(c) NewsRoom 2008
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