Wall Street plunges despite Fed rate cut

NEW YORK: Wall Street plunged at the opening of trading yesterday, propelling the Dow Jones industrials down about 300 points after an interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve failed to assuage investors fearing a recession in the United States.

US markets joined stock exchanges around the globe that have fallen precipitously in recent days amid concerns that a downturn might spread around the world.

The Fed yesterday slashed US interest rates by a hefty three-quarters of a percentage point, the biggest rate cut in more than 23 years, in an emergency bid to lend support to a US economy some fear is on the verge of recession.