Jingoism and speculation -- two great tastes that taste great together.

MediaGuardian.co.uk | Special reports | NY stock exchange bans Arab TV network The New York stock exchange has banned al-Jazeera from its trading floor, prompting accusations that it was retaliating against the Arabic-language TV network's stance on the war in Iraq.

A reporter for al-Jazeera, which has been criticised by the US military for its coverage of conflict, has been barred from entering the exchange while another has been ordered to return his press card.

A spokesman for the NYSE said it was limiting access to "responsible" broadcasters and insisted other broadcasters had also been affected.

But al-Jazeera, which has covered the New York stock market for several years, said it believed it was the only channel affected by the action and attributed the decision to its stance on the war.

"Al-Jazeera has received an official letter from the New York stock exchange informing it that the station's financial reporters can no longer present their reports from the exchange," the satellite channel reported today on its morning financial broadcast.

It claimed the decision had been taken "because of al-Jazeera's coverage of the war on Iraq".