Dollar slides to brink of free fall

Worldcom scandal: Currencies: Latest Wall Street disaster sends investors all over the world running for cover

By Philip Thornton
Economics Correspondent

27 June 2002

The US dollar yesterday moved to the brink of free fall ­ a nightmare scenario for the world economy ­ after reverberations from the WorldCom scandal triggered panic among investors.

The currency came within a whisker of parity with the euro and crashed through key psychological barriers against the yen and the pound as investors rushed to dump dollar assets.

"This is threatening to become a disorderly market," David Bloom, global economist at HSBC, said. "There's no better way to show a loss of confidence in a country than through its currency."

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