A strong winter storm slammed New York City and much of the U.S. Northeast today, forcing businesses, schools and transportation systems to shut down, Reuters reported. Commuters struggled in the absence of suburban train and bus services into New York City, where several inches (cm) of snow accumulation and drifts of several feet snarled morning rush hour travel. On Wall Street, workers pitched in electronically or braved the storm to get to their jobs, so trading was unlikely to take a heavy hit, observers said. "I don't think it will affect the volume, and volumes have been light anyway," said Alan Valdes, director of floor trading at Kabrik Trading. "I would guess volumes would be light whether it was sunny and in the 70s or not." The wintry blast, which began on Thursday and was predicted to last through Saturday, was the third heavy storm to hit the region in a month. Bond trading was light due to the inclement weather, said William Larkin, fixed income portfolio manager at Cabot Money Management in Salem, Massachusetts. "New York is probably out of the picture," he said. Parts of Pennsylvania, northern New Jersey, upstate New York and Massachusetts could expect snow accumulations of as much as two feet (61 cm), the National Weather Service said. The storm was moving very slowly and was expected to hover over the Northeast through Saturday, the NWS said. The impact of the bad winter weather could be felt throughout a U.S. economy still struggling to emerge from recession.
