Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Global Stock Market 2008

Global stock markets in 2008

The global financial turmoil seen during 2008 has led to extreme volatility on the world's stock markets.

Below you can see how some of the main global stock indexes have fared during 2008 (

FTSE 100 INDEX: JAN-DEC 2008
FTSE 100 INDEX chart Jan-Dec 2008

DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE: JAN-DEC 2008
DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE chart Jan-Dec 2008

NIKKEI 225 INDEX: JAN-DEC 2008
NIKKEI 225 chart Jan-Dec 2008

DAX INDEX: JAN-DEC 2008
DAX INDEX chart Jan-Dec 2008

CAC 40 INDEX: JAN-DEC 2008
CAC 40 chart Jan-Dec 2008

BBC GLOBAL 30 INDEX: JAN-DEC 2008
BBC GLOBAL 30 chart Jan-Dec 2008

Skipping_Sleep


Skipping sleep 'hardens arteries'


People who scrimp on sleep are more likely to develop hardening of their arteries, a precursor to heart disease, research suggests.

Calcified arteries were found in nearly a third of people who slept fewer than five hours a night.

This dropped to around one in 10 for those who slept an extra hour, the Journal of the American Medical Association study of 495 adults found.

Experts said getting enough sleep was important for good heart health.

In the study, the volunteers underwent two CT scans, designed to assess the build-up of calcium in the heart's arteries, five years apart.

Although this single study does not prove that short sleep leads to coronary artery disease, it is safe to recommend at least six hours of sleep a night
Dr Diane Lauderdale, lead researcher