November 1, 2007 (LPAC)--Big losses by Citigroup, Credit-Suisse, Bank of America, and Exxon-Mobil rattled financial markets today, plunging the Dow Jones by more than 260 points at its opening, and closing with a loss of 362 points.

Against the backdrop of rising oil prices, Exxon-Mobil's quarterly profits dropped 10% compared to the same period last year, which company officials attributed to higher production and exploration costs.

Citigroup reported $6.5 bn. in writedowns and losses for the third quarter, which will force it to cut its dividend, or sell assets in order to raise $30 bn. to shore up its capital. Its shares have been downgraded to the lowest level in four years. Analysts are pointing to Citigroup's exposure to the subprime mortgage crisis as the major reason for its losses.

The same is true of Credit-Suisse, whose net income fell by 31% for the third quarter. Its CEO Brady Dougan cited "extreme market conditions" sparked by record U.S. home foreclosures.

Peter Horne, an analyst at the London-based Helvea SA, told Bloomberg news service "We've been led to expect horrors in investment banking and we weren't disappointed."

Bringing up the rear, the Wall Street Journal today depicts the woes of Bear Stearns, charging that during the height of its crisis last summer, when two of its hedge funds went under, CEO James Cayne was allegedly goofing off on the golf course, playing bridge, and smoking pot.