Wall St. tumbles depite economic stimulus nod from Congress

NEW YORK, Feb 8, 2008 (AFP) - US stock markets tumbled heavily in the week to Friday, giving Wall Street a fresh battering, despite Congress granting a green light to a giant economic stimulus package sought by the White House. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions. The plan, worth around 150 billion dollars, is stuffed with temporary tax rebates and business incentives designed to give the economy a boost, but some analysts say the world's biggest economy is already in a recession.

In the week to Friday, the benchmark blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average fell a hefty 4.40 percent to close at 12,182.13. The leading index is down over eight percent for the year to date.

The tech-laden Nasdaq composite lost 4.50 percent to 2,304.85 while the broad market Standard & Poor's 500 index dropped 4.60 percent to 1,331.29.

All three stock barometers have ceded significant ground since last August amid an ongoing housing slump and a related credit crunch which have bruised the earnings of major banks and financial firms.

Debate continues to rage over whether the US economy is in recession or not. Some analysts believe the economy is in recession, while others argue that growth is still positive and some e