US stocks plunge on economy fears

Stocks on Wall Street plunged the most in seven months as rumblings of unrest in Saudi Arabia compounded economic worries abroad and in the US.

Pressure on the major indexes intensified late in the day with reports that Saudi Arabian police fired rubber bullets to disperse about 200 Shiite protesters in the eastern town of Qatif, injuring at least three.

Major indexes had already been lower after a downgrade of Spain's government debt, worry about the trade deficit in China and a disappointing read on US employment.

At the close (10am NZ time), the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average index slipped under 12,000 as it ended down 228.48 points, or 1.9%, at 11,984.61. It was the biggest one-day fall since Agust 11, 2010. All of the Dow's components except for McDonald's finished in the red.

Caterpillar, a guage of the global economy, fell 3.9% while Exxon Mobil fell 3.6%. Among other stocks, General Motors fell 2.6% after it said its chief financial officer, New Zealander Chris Liddell, would leave the company early next month.

The S&P 500 index dropped 1.9% to 1295.11 as its energy and materials components slumped. The Nasdaq Composite fell 1.8% to 2701.02.

Other markets: Europe, Asia down
European stocks fell sharply. The Stoxx Europe 600 index slid 1.2% to 277.82. The UK's FTSE 100 index fell 1.5% to 5845.29, France's CAC-40 index shed 0.7% to 3963.99 and Germany's DAX fell 1% to 7063.0

Asian shares slumped with Shanghai snapping a four-session win streak after China posted a $US7.3 billion trade deficit for February. Markets expected a surplus. The Shanghai Composite index shed 1.5% to 2957.14.

The Nikkei Stock Average declined 1.5% to 10,434.38, the lowest close since February 3. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 fell 1.4% to 4699.68, the steepest one-day slide since November.

Taiwan's Taiex slid 1.2% to8642.90, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 0.8% to 23614.89 and India's Sensex shed 0.8% to 18,327.98. In Seoul, the Kospi fell 1% to 1981.58, leaving it 6.3% below the record close of January 19.

Commodities: Oil down
Crude futures tumbled more than 3.5% but pared losses late in the sesssion on the reports out of Saudi Arabia. Light, sweet crude for April delivery settled $US1.68 a barrel lower, or 1.6% at $US102.70 in New York. Brent crude on the ICE futures exchange settled 51USc lower at $115.43 a barrel after falling as low as $US113.52.

Gold extended losses to its lowest point in nearly two weeks as easing oil prices dimmed the metal's allure as a refuge investment and a stronger US dollar clipped demand.

The most actively traded gold contract, for April delivery, was down $US22.10, or 1.5%, at $US1407.50 an ounce in New York. Its intraday low of $US1404.10 was gold's weakest price since February 25.

Currencies: US dollar recovers
The US dollar rose to its highest level in a week against the euro after the surprise Spanish government debt downgrading. The euro sank as low as $1.3793, the lowest level in a week.

The euro was at $US1.3804, down from $US1.3904 late on Wednesday. The dollar was at ¥82.92 from ¥82.71.