News that a French bank is going to freeze three funds that invested in U.S. subprime mortgages, sent the Wall Street falling. With the kind of economy we are in, just about any news around the world could cause the stocks to tumble. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070809/ap_on_bi_st_ma_re/wall_street;_ylt=Amm6N1HlD3H9MXrxUKOoo0pI2ocA 
The economy has been affected for quite some time now. People have been holding on to what they have in hopes that things will get better, soon. Whenever you talk to people, there is a sense of, "I Thought it was just me thinking and feeling this way" on their faces. That is what keeps them going, but not for long.