Global Shares Plummet on Gloomy Data

Stocks plummeted worldwide on Friday, and United States futures fell so steeply that they reached their daily permissible limits, indicating a sharp decline in share prices when official trading opens in New York.

Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 550 points and both it and the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index were locked, although the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq said trading in the official markets would open as normal at 9:30 a.m., Eastern time.

The global rout was propelled by dismal corporate earnings and economic data around the world pointing to a profound slowdown.

In Europe, major exchanges opened with falls of around 5 percent that then turned even lower.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index plunged 9.6 percent, hitting its lowest level since April 2003.

By early afternoon trading, the FTSE 100 in London had slipped by 8 percent, the CAC 40 in Paris was down 9 percent and in Frankfurt the DAX lost 9.3 percent.

The Kospi in South Korea plummeted 10.6 percent, falling 1,000 points and heading for a total decline this year of more than 50 percent.

Stock markets around the world are troubled by worries over looming economic disruption following the financial market meltdown.

Investors are concerned that a radical slowdown will harm companies’ profitability more than previously feared, concerns that appeared to be borne out as a string of companies issued worse-than-expected results.

Article Continues: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/25/business/25markets.html?hp