US mortgage finance giant Fannie Mae yesterday posted a record-high US$29 billion loss in the third quarter of this year.

The company's net worth fell to US$9.4 billion at the end of September from US$44.1 billion at the end of last year.

If that number turns negative, Fannie Mae said it would have to tap the government's US$100 billion funding as early as next year.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which own or guarantee around half of US home loans, were seized by federal regulators in early September.

The US government was to inject up to US$100 billion in each company in exchange for ownership stakes of almost 80 percent.