Iceland shuts stock exchange

Crisis-hit Iceland suspended trading on its stock exchange until Monday today.

The OMX Nordic Exchange Iceland said the decision was due to “unusual market conditions”.

Iceland is sinking deeper into financial turmoil as its top-heavy banking system collapses.

The Icelandic government now has control of all three of the country’s major banks – Kaupthing, Landsbanki and Glitnir – as it struggles to contain the panic.

The crisis is also hitting several other countries in Europe, where thousands of people have accounts with subsidiaries of the Icelandic banks.