US, European stocks fall
Sunday, 26 October 2008
NEW YORK, Oct 25 (AFP): World stock markets plunged deep into negative territory Friday as gloom gathered over the global economy and dismal corporate news left investors stunned.
"Everyone is staring at their screens in disbelief," said Tom Hougaard, chief market analyst at City Index.
US and leading European exchanges nonetheless managed to pare their losses despite rising fears of a worldwide recession that will slam a wide range of industries.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average slumped 312.30 points (3.59 per cent) to close at 8,378.95, in a volatile session that saw the blue-chip index down as much as 500 points.
The market action capped a week with a drop of more than 5.0 per cent for the benchmark Wall Street index.
But New York averted the meltdown in some markets such as the 9.60 per cent Tokyo plunge earlier Friday and losses of around 5.0 per cent in Europe.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq shed 51.88 points (3.23 per cent) to 1,552.03 and the Standard & Poor's 500 index dropped 31.34 points (3.45 per cent) to 876.77.
The losses came amid a wave of panic in markets around the world as mounting evidence signaled that major economies are heading for recession from a credit crunch and banking crisis.
"Everyone is staring at their screens in disbelief," said Tom Hougaard, chief market analyst at City Index.
US and leading European exchanges nonetheless managed to pare their losses despite rising fears of a worldwide recession that will slam a wide range of industries.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average slumped 312.30 points (3.59 per cent) to close at 8,378.95, in a volatile session that saw the blue-chip index down as much as 500 points.
The market action capped a week with a drop of more than 5.0 per cent for the benchmark Wall Street index.
But New York averted the meltdown in some markets such as the 9.60 per cent Tokyo plunge earlier Friday and losses of around 5.0 per cent in Europe.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq shed 51.88 points (3.23 per cent) to 1,552.03 and the Standard & Poor's 500 index dropped 31.34 points (3.45 per cent) to 876.77.
The losses came amid a wave of panic in markets around the world as mounting evidence signaled that major economies are heading for recession from a credit crunch and banking crisis.