As US Congress reached an agreement over a $700 billion dollar financing package, European governments rushed in to avert a crisis, injecting billions of dollars into the banking sector. Iceland agreed to buy a 75 per cent stake in Glitnir Bank hf at a cost of 600 million euros. The European Central Bank extended a special facility for banks to access additional through ‘special’ auctions. In the UK, the growing anxiety in financial markets stability was reflected in the government’s acquisition of the biggest lender to landlords, Bradford & Bingley Plc. This is an indication of the volatility of the world’s financial market, despite what is seen as a globalised international trading system. Mamoun Tazi, an analyst at MF Global Securities Ltd. in London, says a precarious global environment means the weakest links in Europe are now falling. He cautioned that if banks continued lending to each other, failures would continue. ‘
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