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CNN Live Event/Special

America Under Attack: America's Financial Center Turned Off

Aired September 14, 2001 - 06:23   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JONATHAN MANN, CNN ANCHOR: New York City is returning to normal, if normal is having the military patrol the streets and the skies. Streets are being reopened, though, most schools are in session and even Broadway shows are turning on the lights again. But in the financial district where the debris and the shock are deepest, stock exchanges will wait a bit longer before opening again.

Allan Chernoff has that part of the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Pointing out that the rescue effort is far more important than trading stocks, exchange and government officials decided to wait until after the weekend to reopen.

RICHARD GRASSO, CHAIRMAN, NYSE: The right thing to do for America and certainly for those who are in the middle of this great tragedy that's been -- that's been so heinously foisted upon us is to resume trading 9:30 Monday morning.

CHERNOFF: A secondary consideration, telecommunications capacity. Immediately north of the World Trade Center site, the large dark building on the left here, is a telecom switching station through which 20 percent of the exchanges data normally flows. It is now out of commission. The local phone company, Verizon, is working furiously to rebuild that capacity and the exchanges plan to test their systems on Saturday.

WICK SIMMONS, CHAIRMAN, NASDAQ: We'll be testing the systems as best we can. Obviously we want to know what we need to know in order to open the markets at 9:30 on Monday morning.

CHERNOFF: A very different kind of rebuilding involves investor confidence. Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Harvey Pitt is trying to calm investors.

HARVEY PITT, CHAIRMAN, SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION: This is not an economic problem, it's a physical catastrophe. People are responding to a physical tragedy. That should not in any way, shape or form cause anyone to believe that there will be something sinister like a Black Monday resulting from the opening of trading.

CHERNOFF (on camera): Exchange officials say no matter what the Dow and the Nasdaq composite do when the markets reopen, there'll be prepared to handle the trading.

Allan Chernoff, CNN Financial News, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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