Schoolchildren and ski-lift operators may get summer breaks, but markets don't.
  This summer was interrupted by an auction-rate-securities crackdown, worries about Lehman Brothers Holdings and a reshuffling at American International Group. Some of the season's biggest stories will have repercussions for the rest of the year. Here are five:
   Credit: The credit squeeze that began in the dog days of 2007 celebrated its birthday with a full head of steam. The yield spread between high-yield corporate bonds and Treasurys has widened to 8.29 percentage points, from 6.7 points on Memorial Day. Spreads on investment-grade debt, mortgages and other credit products have swollen, as well, as banks tighten lending standards.
  A government resolution of the problems at mortgage buyers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac could help. But today's tight credit will likely hurt the economy for months to come, creating more credit problems. The cycle may not break until home prices stabilize.
   Government: Maybe it was coincidence, but when the Securities and Exchange Commission announced in mid-July it would temporarily make life tougher for short-sellers of certain financial stocks, financials rallied, pulling up the broader market.
  Investors took the message that some markets are free to move only in one direction. Falling stocks, say, or rising oil will inspire Uncle Sam to meddle. Along with the Federal Reserve's emergency interest-rate cut in January and the shotgun wedding of Bear Stearns, Wall Street has the notion the government won't let things get too, too bad. That could set the stage for disappointment.
   Dollar: The dollar took investors by surprise with an abrupt shift in fortune, in a rally that picked up speed early this month on bad economic news out of Europe.
  Is this move real or a temporary surge? The answer may come down to a battle of the bad economies. Some investors maintain that the dollar's health ultimately depends on improvement in U.S. fundamentals. But so far, its spurt is on the back of economic weakness elsewhere. If that pain persists, the dollar could continue to benefit.
   Commodities: Also helping stocks briefly rebound this summer was an abrupt commodities pratfall. Signs of global economic weakness were mainly behind the decline. What comes next depends on how long those slowdowns last, along with China's growth trajectory after the Olympics. Some analysts believe the commodity-hungry nation is due for a typical post-Games hangover, but the reverse could happen, as China ramps up economic activity temporarily shut down to improve air quality in Beijing.
   M&A: InBev's $52 billion purchase of Anheuser-Busch was a headline deal amid what continues to be dreary M&A environment. Deal volume fell off a cliff last August, and this August fell further.
Among deals, InBev-Anheuser typifies what's been happening and what might come next. InBev made an unsolicited offer with the threat to go hostile. Such contentiousness will likely continue, as depressed shares fuel battles over price.
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炎炎夏日，学校里的孩子们和经营雪橇项目的商家可以偷闲喘口气了，但市场从来没有停歇的时候。
这是一个不平静的夏季，发生了标售利率证券市场崩溃&#12289;雷曼兄弟(Lehman Brothers)命运引发担忧以及美国国际集团(American International Group)重组等事件。这时期以下领域的事态将对今年余下时间产生重大影响。
信贷：2007年盛夏开始的信贷危机转眼已满一年，其影响已充分显露。高收益公司债券与国债之间的收益率差已扩大到8.29个百分点，而阵亡将士纪念日（5月26日）时还是6.7个点。随着银行收紧放贷标准，投资级债券&#12289;按揭债券和其他信用产品与国债之间的息差也明显扩大。
政府针对房利美(Fannie Mae)和房地美(Freddie Mac)两大按揭机构采取的措施有可能有所帮助。但如今的信贷紧缩可能会影响未来数月的经济形势，带来更多的信贷问题。在住房价格趋稳之前，这波循环不会被打破。
政府：也许只是巧合，但证券交易委员会(SEC) 7月中旬宣布将对某些金融类股的作空方临时实行更严格的限制之后，金融股果然大涨，带动了大盘上涨。
投资者由此得到的信息是，某些市场只能在一个方向上自由波动。股价下跌或油价上涨会引来山姆大叔插手干预。在联邦储备委员会(Fed) 1月份紧急降息和贝尔斯登(Bear Stearns)被迫嫁与他人的时候，华尔街明白了政府不会听任事情一败涂地。由此来看，让人失望的事还在后头。
美元：美元突然间时来运转让投资者措手不及，随着欧洲经济传来更多噩耗，本月初美元升势进一步加速。
美元这是短暂回升，还是真的发生了逆转？答案可能将取决于运气不佳的经济体中间谁更倒霉。一些投资者认为，美元走势要真正好转将有赖美国基本面的改善。但目前而言，它只是在其他地区经济疲软之际乘虚而入罢了。如果其他地区继续萎靡，则美元的好日子还将持续。
大宗商品：这个夏天推动股市短暂反弹的还有因全球经济走软等原因导致的大宗商品的突然溃退。接下来会怎样将取决于衰退将持续多久以及北京奥运会后中国经济的走向。一些分析师认为，这个对大宗商品有巨大需求的国家在奥运会后经济将照例出现后遗症。但发生相反情况也不是没有可能，因为北京奥运期间为保证空气质量而暂停的经济活动正在陆续恢复。
并购：在并购市场持续低迷之际，英博公司(InBev)斥资520亿美元收购安海斯(Anheuser-Busch)无疑是桩抢眼的买卖。并购交易量去年8月开始大幅萎缩，今年8月还在继续。
在所有交易中，英博这起交易很有代表性，它充分反映了市场的现状及未来走向。英博主动向对方提出收购，且威胁如不接受，可能会发起敌意收购。这种凶悍做法可能还会出现，毕竟，股市低迷使得收购价格战有了空间。
