7. Britain's housing bust is bringing down the economy, too

LEEDS, England: Down the road from the train station here is a gaping hole. At the height of the property boom, a developer started to build what was to become one of the tallest and most stylish apartment blocks, designed by Philippe Starck. But construction stopped abruptly last month when financing dried up because of the credit crunch. Now the abandoned site stands as a stark symbol of the collapse of Britain's building boom and how the credit market turmoil in the United States has seeped across the Atlantic. It also suggests what lies ahead for a few other European economies where property booms gave now debt-ridden consumers a false sense of wealth and security. In recent weeks, Britons have come to an uncomfortable realization: After 17 years of uninterrupted growth, their economy is moving closer to recession and may... [read full story]