World Rides to Wall Street's Rescue

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120044526135892909.html?mod=hps_us_whats_news

By DAVID ENRICH , ROBIN SIDEL and SUSANNE CRAIG
January 16, 2008; Page A1

In the latest sign of America's sinking financial fortunes, investors from as far afield as Japan, Korea, Singapore, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have come to the rescue of Wall Street.The list of players that agreed yesterday to pump a combined $19.1 billion of capital into Citigroup Inc. and Merrill Lynch & Co. spotlights a dramatic shift in power. After flooding the world with capital that fed both economic growth and excess, battered U.S. financial institutions now are turning to countries and companies that not so long ago were suffering through their own disasters.

Yesterday's infusions follow earlier investments into wounded American and European titans, including Morgan Stanley and UBS AG. The bailout is another milestone in a long-running trend: the subsidization of the U.S. economy by foreign investors, from Asian governments purchasing U.S. Treasury bonds to finance the national debt to deep-pocketed oil states snapping up stakes in hobbled banks.

Yesterday's infusions follow earlier investments into wounded American and European titans, including Morgan Stanley and UBS AG. The bailout is another milestone in a long-running trend: the subsidization of the U.S. economy by foreign investors, from Asian governments purchasing U.S. Treasury bonds to finance the national debt to deep-pocketed oil states snapping up stakes in hobbled banks.