AP - Oil prices closed below $75 a barrel for the first time in nearly 14 months Wednesday after OPEC, fearing that a severe global economic slowdown is unavoidable, slashed its 2009 petroleum demand forecast.

AP - The U.S. has not endured a deep and prolonged recession in more than a quarter century — enough time for many Americans to forget what one feels like.

AP - Despair over the economy sent Wall Street plunging again Wednesday, propelling the Dow Jones industrials down 733 points to their second-largest point loss ever. Stocks fell on a combination of disheartening economic data, including a big drop in retail sales and a Federal Reserve report that said tight credit conditions are hurting businesses across the country.

Reuters - Stocks tumbled on Wednesday as bleak economic data fed worries that all the efforts to unlock credit markets may not stave off a severe recession.

AP - John McCain sought to change the course of a campaign moving decidedly in Barack Obama's direction Wednesday night in the third and final presidential debate.