Banks' nerves jittery over subprime mess

Banks' nerves jittery over subprime mess
"The current situation is unprecedented in recent financial history," wrote Patrick Perret-Green, a strategist at Citigroup Inc. in London in a note.

"The spread has occasionally been as wide, but this was back in the late 1980s when rates were moving dramatically higher and interest rates moved in one percentage-point steps," said Mr. Perret-Geen.

"The risk of significant failure is building. Central banks don't seem to recognize the dangers."

Stephen Lewis, chief economist at Insinger de Beaufort, a private Dutch bank, said he has not seen anything quite like it.

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