8 Oct 2008

Morning Report: overseas papers

8:56 am on 8 October 2008

Reserve Bank of Australia cuts interest rates by 1% as fear dominates overseas markets; Bangkok protests turn fatal; darker side of motorcycle stuntman Evel Knievel revealed in FBI files.

Australia

The Sydney Morning Herald reports homeowners will receive the biggest single reduction to their mortgage repayments in 16 years after the cash rate was cut by 1% by the Reserve Bank.

The Australian Financial Review reports confidence in the European banking system has been dented by reports that two of Britain's largest banks have discussed taking part in a government-funded bailout package.

The Australian reports the Reserve Bank has signalled it will do whatever it takes to keep the Australian economy from sliding into recession.

Britain

Front pages are dominated by what The Daily Telegraph calls the "market mayhem". The Independent says the mood could be summed up in one word - fear.

The plunge in the British share index is dubbed the "Monday Massacre" by the Daily Mirror. The Financial Times says the sell-off came in spite of a frantic scramble by governments around the world to contain the crisis.

In other news: The Telegraph and the Guardian report on a darker side to the legendary American motorcycle stuntman, Evel Knievel. FBI files released after his death reveal he was suspected of links to organised crime and a series of beatings in the 1970s.

The United States

Financial markets also dominate American newspapers, with The Wall Street Journal saying the global financial crisis as taking a "perilous turn".

The Washington Post and New York Times highlight news that the Federal Reserve is considering a plan to buy large amounts of unsecured short-term debt in an effort to revive the financial system.

Asia

The Straits Times reports protests outside parliament in Bangkok left at least one dead and hundreds injured as months of political turmoil boiled over.

Dozens of residents in Singapore were given an unexpectedly loud wakeup call when 52 parked motorcycles exploded in a carpark fire.