Global stocks slip after Wall Street Plunge

Germany's DAX-30 fell 0.46 percent at 6,429.890, the French CAC-40 fell 0.13 percent at 4,420.25 and London's FTSE 100 rose 0.13 percent to 5,525.40.

In Asia, the sell-off spread across the entire region, with nearly every key Asian index in the red. Shanghai's benchmark plunged more than 5 percent to a 16-month low and India's Sensex fell 4.3 percent.

Additionally, Japanese stocks dropped for a seventh day to a two-month low. Markets in Hong Kong, South Korea, New Zealand and the Philippines were off around 2 percent.

U.S. stocks fluctuated Friday after a sharp dive the day before. The Dow was up 20.03, or 0.17 percent, at 11,473.45.

Global market sentiment took a hit after U.S. stocks sank Thursday, with the Dow Jones industrial average sliding more than 3 percent to its lowest level in almost two years.

Worries over the outlook for the American economy--a vital export market for Asia--intensified after dismal news about a number of industries. Analysts downgraded General Motors Corp., Citigroup and Merrill Lynch & Co., while tech companies Oracle Corp. and BlackBerry maker Research In Motion Ltd. offered disappointing forecasts.

Oil prices, which climbed above $140 a barrel late Thursday, surged past $141 in Asian trading Friday and then past $142 in the European trading day, aggravating fears about inflation and rising costs.

"We've still got bad news on the credit crunch, we've got bad news about consumers," said Garry Evans, pan-Asian equity strategist with HSBC in Hong Kong. "The macro environment is not a good one and people are very risk averse."

In China, the Shanghai Composite Index sank 5.3 percent to 2,748.43 points, the lowest close since February 9, 2007. Aside from record crude prices, reports of speculation about possible bank rate hikes were spooking traders.