MARKET TUMBLE? – AT 9:16 A.M. ET:  The financial world is very jittery this morning.  Declines last week, coupled with a steep decline over the weekend in Chinese stocks are creating a serious panic attack.  Will American stocks crumble?  From Reuters:

LONDON (Reuters) - Alarm bells rang across world markets on Monday as a near 9 percent dive in China shares and a sharp drop in the dollar and major commodities panicked investors.

European stocks were more than 5 percent in the red and Wall Street was braced for similar losses after Asian shares slumped to 3-year lows as a three month-long rout in Chinese equities threatened to get out of hand.

Oil plunged another 4 percent, while safe-haven government U.S. and German bonds and the yen and the euro rallied as widespread fears of a China-led global economic slowdown and currency war kicked in.

"It is a China driven macro panic," said Didier Duret, chief investment officer at ABN Amro. "Volatility will persist until we see better data there or strong policy action through forceful monetary easing."

Many traders had hoped that such support measures, which could include an interest rate cut, would have come from Beijing over the weekend after its main stocks markets slumped 11 percent last week.

With serious doubts also now emerging about the likelihood of a U.S. interest rate rise this year, the dollar slid against other major currencies.

COMMENT:  We'll be watching.  So will the political class.  If there's an economic turndown in the next six months, it clearly will affect the 2016 election.

August 24,  2015