Credit markets still tight as stocks plunge

The jammed credit markets barely budged Monday as governments around the world scrambled to prop up their failing banks and investors waited for details on how, exactly, the Treasury will go about buying $700 billion of U.S. banks' mortgage assets. If lending remains tight, it could cause more cash flow problems for the companies and municipalities that rely on the credit markets and banks for short-term loans. "It's hard to exaggerate how bad things are. Things are still profoundly dislocated," said T.J. Marta, fixed-income analyst at RBC Capital Markets. Energy retailer Reliant Energy indicated Monday it may be searching for a buyer after getting slammed by stricter credit standards that forced it to raise $1 billion last week. Tobacco company Altria Group Inc. reportedly might delay its acquisition of smokeless tobacco... [read full story]