Oct. 3--Speculation over the government's planned $700 billion bailout of the country's financial institution is proving to not just be costing banks, but almost every sector of the economy.

West Chester Twp.-based AK Steel saw its stock slide almost 17 percent to a new yearly low of $20.27 at the close of trading Thursday, Oct. 2, as hedge fund holders speculated over whether such commodity stocks were still capable of "cleaning up the mess" left by the market on Monday, according to a money-management firm.

Spokesman Alan McCoy said the company does not speculate on its stock price, but acknowledged the domestic steel industry as a whole has seen its prices sink over the past three months.

"Clearly, investor sentiment across most sectors of the economy has been reacting to this unprecedented issue hour by hour, as you've seen the Dow fluctuate widely the past few days," he said.

That development has left AK's retirees on edge as the funds the company contributed to the VEBA plan for health care is heavily dependent on the health of the stock market, said Concerned Armco/AK Steel Retired Employees publicity chair John Franklin.

"The [$668 million] they gave us for it is not in a coffee can buried in someone's backyard, it's on Wall Street," he said.

Procter & Gamble's co-chairman and CEO A.G. Lafley also issued a statement urging Congress to pass the plan because of the severe impact this crisis has had on consumer confidence. This week, the Cincinnati-based consumer goods company's stock neither gained nor loss, firmly sitting at $71.27 And not all bailout speculation has been bad. In fact, one bank's bust has been another bank's boom.

Wells Fargo saw its highest stock rating ever last week; Bank of America was able to absorb Merrill Lynch; Citigroup made plans to take over the troubled Wachovia; and billionaire Warren Buffett jumped in, investing $5 billion in Goldman Sachs Group securities and announcing that the Buffett-run Berkshire Hathaway Inc. will buy $3 billion in General Electric common stock.

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