Wall Street plans to open for business again Monday. Stock market officials have decided to stay closed for a fourth straight day Friday for both technical and humane considerations.
The terror attack that rumbled through the world's financial center Tuesday crippled a lot of the infrastructure of the stock markets. Hampering the resumption of trading was the destruction of the Verizon Communications Center, which had been located in the the World Trade Center, and underground cables that transmit essential data, including orders from investors.
Equipment will be tested over the weekend to make sure everything is ready for Monday morning.
No one seems quite sure what to expect when trading resumes. Will the markets move sharply lower? Will the economic toll of Tuesday's devastating attack push the U.S. economy closer toward recession? That would undermine confidence.
According to Gary Thayer, chief economist for the A.G. Edwards investment firm, nothing is clear right now. "There are really two emotions that are running pretty high right now," she said. "One of them is worry. The other is patriotism. Of course, worry is not good for the economy but patriotism is. We'll have to see which takes the upper hand here. Obviously, we've been in a very difficult time in the economy and this will be a real test."
The building of the New York Stock Exchange, the world's largest stock market, is just two blocks away from the rubble in lower Manhattan. It remains cordoned off.
Tuesday's terror attack clearly struck at the hearts and minds of everyone involved in equity trading. Part of the reason for staying closed until Monday, officials say, is to keep people out of the area while there remains any hope, however slight, that more victims can be found alive in the smoldering debris.