Macquarie Bank loses A$5.2b of value

Australian finance powerhouse Macquarie Bank suffered at the hand of nervous investors yesterday, as the sixth consecutive day of heavy selling saw more than A$5.2 billion wiped from the investment bank's market value.

The big hit it took came despite the bank being given the all clear, along with the rest of the Australian banking sector, over its exposure to the US subprime debt crisis, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.

But investors were still skittish and abandoned the investment bank in droves as its stock lost a further 6.6 per cent, dropping A$4.95 during the day before closing at A$70.05 - a level not seen since last October.

In all, Macquarie has shed more than one-fifth of its market capitalisation - $19.50 a share - since last Monday when the wobbles that emanated from the subprime loan crisis in the US swept through the Australian and New Zealand equities markets.

Source: The New Zealand Herald
Date: 08.08.2007 [ID: 69]