U.S. Financial Markets to Remain Closed Wednesday

NEW YORK – The New York Stock Exchange said on Tuesday that the main U.S. stock exchanges will not resume trade Wednesday in the wake of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center.

``The American Stock Exchange, the Nasdaq Stock Market and the New York Stock Exchange, after consultation with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and in light of the heinous attack on America, have decided to remain closed through Wednesday, September 12,'' the New York Stock Exchange said in a prepared statement.

All financial markets were closed early Tuesday after three planes were crashed into buildings in New York and Washington.

``The U.S. markets, after further consultation with the SEC, will announce tomorrow when U.S. equities markets will reopen,'' the statement concluded.

The three hijacked planes slammed into U.S. landmarks, destroying New York's World Trade Center and plunging part of the Pentagon outside Washington into flames.

Many of the nation's investment firms have at least some of their operations in the World Trade Center or surrounding buildings, limiting their ability to restart quickly. And the New York Mercantile Exchange, where energy futures are traded, is located in the nearby World Financial Center.

Much of the downtown district was evacuated. It was difficult to make phone calls to the downtown business district and throughout Manhattan.

The collapse of both of the World Trade Center skyscrapers and reports of attacks on the State Department and on the Pentagon in Washington added to the paralysis and terror already engulfing the financial district. The fate of the 50,000 people who work in the twin 110-story towers was not immediately known.

Hundreds of companies sent their employees home for the day, putting thousands of New Yorkers into the streets after public transportation was shut down for fear of more attacks.

"The two explosions were incredible and at the point of explosions all you could see outside were personal belongings and office supplies raining outside," said Bob Rendine, an American Stock Exchange spokesman, whose office is down the block from the NYSE. "We're staying here. We think it's safer to stay inside then go outside at this point."

Business and trading in other parts of the country also were affected. The Chicago Board of Trade also suspended all trading effective, 10:15 a.m.

In Canada, the Toronto Stock Exchange ended its trading in midmorning.

Overseas, the London Stock Exchange evacuated its building but said trade would continue from an alternate site.

Around the country and world, the investment community was focused on the fate of people working in the buildings affected by the apparent terrorist attacks.

"I'm just worried about people who are there," said Robert Harrington, head of listed block trading at UBS Warburg's office in Connecticut.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.