Stocks Sink; Bush Pledges Deal

Socks plummeted today as confidence in the federal bailout program evaporated and investors absorbed the collapse of Washington Mutual. The Dow fell 140 points after the opening bell, while the Nasdaq dropped 2.2% and the S&P fell 1.7%, the Wall Street Journal reports. President Bush gave a brief statement promising that Congress was working toward a deal and would "get a package passed," but he offered no details. "There is no disagreement that something substantial should be done," Bush said.

“There are fears that without a swift rescue package more finance companies will collapse, choking the flow of funds to the economy,” explained one strategist. Washington Mutual’s demise, the largest bank failure in US history, raised already high anxieties in the financials. The sector fell 5%, led by a 27% drop for Wachovia and a 19% drop for National City Corp. (More markets stories.)