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Yet, oddly enough, there was gloom in Torydom's own stronghold, the "City" (London's financial district). Perhaps it was disappointment at the narrowness of Churchill's victory, or fear that an excess profits tax would be imposed. Whatever the reason, government securities tumbled downhill; at week's end, gilt-edge stocks had plummeted to a postwar low. With an adverse trade balance of $336 million in the month of September, Britain faced foul economic weather. The City—and the rest of the nation—waited anxiously for the King's Speech (drafted by Churchill, approved by the cabinet) to see what the man at the helm proposed to do about it.