European commentary 12/15/2008 1:38:41 PM The European markets fell for the third day on Monday, as a growing list of financial companies acknowledged their exposure to the alleged $50 billion fraud surrounding Wall Street trader Bernard Madoff.

By Gavin Finch and Matthew Brown
Dec. 15 (Bloomberg) — The pound rose from an all-time low against the euro as investors judged its losses excessive.

By William Mauldin and Alex Nicholson
Dec. 15 (Bloomberg) — Russia’s central bank devalued the ruble for the second time in a week after policy makers spent $161 billion of reserves trying to defend the currency and oil revenue slumped.

By Chris Fournier
Dec. 15 (Bloomberg) — Canada’s currency appreciated as its U.S. counterpart declined on speculation the Federal Reserve will cut borrowing costs by a half-percentage point tomorrow, making higher-yielding currencies more attractive.

By Stanley White
Dec. 16 (Bloomberg) — The dollar traded near a two-month low against the euro on speculation the Federal Reserve will today cut the target rate for overnight lending to a record.

By Garfield Reynolds
Dec. 16 (Bloomberg) — Australian funding costs fell for a second day on speculation the Federal Reserve will cut U.S. interest rates to a record low, as policy makers worldwide seek to thaw frozen credit markets by pumping in extra cash.