More blood on the laptop and LCD screens this morning in trading rooms and offices around the country as the market shed another 80 points in its worst losing streak for 26 years.

If the market remains down today it will be the 11th down day in a row. That takes the total loss this month to over $150 billion with the 1.4% drop in value this morning equal to a fall of around $19 billion.

The index has now fallen 17% from its record high in November and is now approaching the 20% level that defines a bear market. Leading the way this morning were the infrastructure and property-related stocks.

Allco Financial was belted by nervy punters after reading an unflattering look at the company in the morning edition of the Australian Financial Review.

The shares plunged as much as 30% per cent in early trading, before steadying.

Just before midday the shares in the investment group, which was part of a failed $11 billion bid last year to acquire national carrier Qantas Airways Ltd, had lost 95c at $3.85, after falling by as much as $1.40 early on.

Shares in other highly geared infrastructure and property investment specialists were also down this morning.

The Packer family-backed Challenger Financial Services Group had fallen 62 cents, or 12%, to $3.57.

Babcock & Brown jettisoned $1.15 or 5.57% to $19.85 while Australia’s largest investment bank Macquarie Group weakened by $2.42, or more than 3%, to $66.90.

BHP Billiton traded down 18 cents to $34.62 while Rio Tinto lost $4.71, or over 4% per cent, to $119.20 on suggestions the mooted new bid for the company from BHP might not eventuate.

The banks were all easier with ANZ Bank down 44c cents to $26.49 and the Commonwealth Bank down $1.16 to $52.04.

Coles’ owner, Wesfarmers again weakened, shedding $1.96, or 5% early on, to $33.65. It recovered a touch to end down 74c at $34.87.

Shares in Consolidated Media Holdings, the media rump of the Packer’s PBL, are in a trading halt pending an announcement.

The media investment company, which was spun out of PBL, requested the halt remain until the start of trading on Wednesday or when the announcement is made.

Shares in Telstra, Seek and News Corp are still trading, so it can’t involve a deal with them.

MFS, the struggling Queensland property and tourism investor asked for its shares to be suspended this morning for the second time in a week.

There are reports the company’s CEO, Michael King, had departed at the weekend. The company says it has received ‘unofficial’ approaches for its Stella tourism business which is highly indebted and owes something like $900 million to MFS in an inter company loan. MFS and Stella owe $780 million to UBS.