FILE - This July 15, 2013, file photo, shows a sign for Wall Street outside the New York Stock Exchange. Global markets shuddered again Thursday, Feb. 11, 2016, with bank stocks in particular getting... (Associated Press) 
 
 FILE - This July 15, 2013, file photo, shows a sign for Wall Street outside the New York Stock Exchange. Global markets shuddered again Thursday, Feb. 11, 2016, with bank stocks in particular getting hammered, oil falling further and investors turning to perceived safe havens like gold. (AP Photo/Mark... (Associated Press) 
 
 FILE - This July 15, 2013, file photo, shows a sign for Wall Street outside the New York Stock Exchange. Global markets shuddered again Thursday, Feb. 11, 2016, with bank stocks in particular getting hammered, oil falling further and investors turning to perceived safe havens like gold. (AP Photo/Mark... (Associated Press) FILE - This July 15, 2013, file photo, shows a sign for Wall Street outside the New York Stock Exchange. Global markets shuddered again Thursday, Feb. 11, 2016, with bank stocks in particular getting... (Associated Press) 
 
 U.S. stocks moved sharply lower early Thursday following steep market declines all around the world as concerns about global economic weakness intensified. Financials stocks were among the biggest decliners as investors worried that interest rates in the U.S. and elsewhere would remain low. 
 
 KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average fell 173 points, or 1.1 percent, to 15,741 as of 10:02 a.m. Eastern Time. The Standard & Poor's 500 lost 17 points, or 1 percent, to 1,834. The Nasdaq composite shed 23 points, or 0.6 percent, to 4,259. 
 
 GLOBAL JITTERS: Investors are increasingly worried that the mounting market turmoil could put a brake on the global economy at a time it is already struggling with a litany of issues — from China's slowdown, low inflation and plunging energy markets. Fed Chair Janet Yellen, giving her semiannual report to Congress on Wednesday, cautioned that global weakness and falling financial markets could depress the U.S. economy's growth. That could, in turn, slow the pace of Fed interest rate hikes. Yellen was scheduled for a second day of testimony before U.S. lawmakers on Thursday. 
 
 BANK SLUMP: Several major banks were trading lower. Citigroup fell $1.73, or 4.6 percent, to $35.68, while JPMorgan slid $2.08, or 3.7 percent, to $53.44. Bank of America shed 62 cents, or 5.2 percent, to $11.36. Wells Fargo lost $1, or 2.2 percent, to $45.17. 
 
 MORTGAGE HANGOVER: Morgan Stanley fell 4 percent after it agreed to pay $3.2 billion to settle federal and state claims that the lender engaged in practices that contributed to the 2008 financial crisis, including misrepresentations about the value of mortgage-backed securities. The stock slid 79 cents to $21.91. 
 
 STRONG QUARTER: Cisco Systems jumped 8.8 percent a day after the seller of routers, switches, software and services reported better-than-expected quarterly results and announced a stock buyback plan and dividend increase. The stock climbed $1.97 to $24.49. 
 
 OVERSEAS MARKETS: In Europe, Germany's DAX dropped 1.8 percent, while France's CAC 40 slid 2.8 percent, dragged down by a 13 percent drop in the shares of bank Societe Generale, which warned about its profits. Britain's FTSE 100 shed 1.5 percent. In Asia, some indexes reopened after a holiday and caught up with several days of market turmoil. Hong Kong's Hang Seng dived 3.9 percent after opening as much as 5 percent lower. South Korea's Kospi staged its biggest daily drop in nearly four years, down 2.9 percent. China and Taiwan will reopen on Monday. Japan was closed Thursday for a separate public holiday. 
 
 ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude oil was down 56 cents, or 2.1 percent, to $26.86 a barrel in New York. The contract lost 49 cents on Wednesday. Brent crude, a benchmark for international oils, was down 31 cents, or 1 percent, to $30.53 a barrel in London. 
 
 BONDS AND CURRENCIES: Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury slid to 1.60 percent from 1.71 percent late Wednesday. In currency markets, the dollar took a dive as investors adjusted their expectations for fewer interest rate increases in the U.S. It fell to 112.26 yen from 113.35 yen. It also fell against the euro, which was up to $1.1342 from $1.1282. ||||| Image copyright Getty Images 
 
 Stock markets across the world have fallen sharply as fears of a Chinese economic slowdown continue to haunt investors. 
 
 London's FTSE 100 index closed down 4.6% at 5,898.87, with major markets in France and Germany down by 5.5% and 4.96% respectively. 
 
 In total, £73.75bn was wiped off the FTSE 100 as a result of Monday's falls. 
 
 In volatile trading, Wall Street's Dow Jones fell 6%, then almost recovered its losses before closing 3.6% lower. 
 
 At one point it fell below 16,000 for the first time since February 2014, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq index closed 3.8% lower, recovering from an earlier plunge of 8%. 
 
 The S&P 500 ended trading 3.9% lower and 11% below its May record, putting it officially in "correction" territory - a fall of 10% or more from its peak. 
 
 Shares in Asia were hit overnight, with the Shanghai Composite in China closing down 8.5%, its worst close since 2007. 
 
 At its lowest point in the day, the FTSE 100 had lost as much as 6%, wiping some £100bn off its value. 
 
 Global investors are worried about growth in the world's second largest economy. 
 
 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Stephen Guilfoyle, New York Stock Exchange floor trader: Markets "bordering on edge of panic" 
 
 Analysis: Michelle Fleury, New York business correspondent 
 
 The floor was buzzing long before the US market open. All the traders knew this wouldn't be a typical sleepy August Monday. 
 
 Minutes after the opening bell, the Dow fell a staggering 1089 points, its biggest ever points drop. One floor trader complained his shirt was soaked with sweat after the early plunge in stocks. 
 
 Another, Stephen Guilfoyle from Deep Value, told me the US markets were 'bordering on the edge of panic but not quite there yet.' He can remember the crash of 1987 and said this didn't feel as bad. 
 
 Indeed by late morning, US markets were showing some resilience, leading Mark Otto of J Streicher to conclude that Monday's big market moves in the US were similar to the 'flash crash' of 2010, when billions of dollars were wiped off some of the world's biggest companies in a matter of minutes, only to recover almost as quickly. 
 
 Karishma Vaswani: China counts cost of Black Monday 
 
 Robert Peston: Will China’s slowdown make us poorer? 
 
 Duncan Weldon: China share falls - why it's not 2008 
 
 Stock market woes 10th session in a row that the FTSE has fallen 8.5% fall in Chinese stocks - biggest one day loss since 2007 
 
 $42.51 Brent crude fell to lowest level since March, 2009 
 
 -2% At one point, the pound saw the biggest fall against the euro in six years 
 
 China's central bank devalued the country's currency, the yuan, two weeks ago, raising fresh concerns that a slowdown in the country's economy was worse than originally feared. 
 
 Currencies and commodities are also falling sharply, because those markets rely heavily on strong demand from China. 
 
 Without strong reassurances from officials in China, investors have not had much reason to buy. 
 
 Analysis: Karishma Vaswani, Asia business correspondent 
 
 Beijing's official mouthpiece has called it China's "Black Monday". 
 
 The Shanghai Composite tumbled by 8.5%, its biggest fall since 2007. That plunge wiped out this year's gains as investors refused to buy into the Chinese government's repeated attempts to shore up confidence. 
 
 Everyone wants to know what the Chinese government is going to do next to shore up shares and confidence in the economy. 
 
 The smart money is on the central bank reducing interest rates and injecting a semblance of consumer confidence into the markets. 
 
 That is what many had hoped would happen over the weekend. 
 
 But at each point in what appears to be an ever-deepening Chinese slowdown, the government has seemed slow to react. 
 
 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption The BBC's Celia Hatton said Chinese investors went on microblogging website Weibo to vent their frustrations 
 
 Selling that started earlier this summer has gained momentum, experts say. 
 
 "It does appear that we're moving very quickly to the downside," said David Madden, market analyst at IG. 
 
 Widespread investor fears about the sharp drops in Asia were exacerbated by thin trading volumes in Europe, with many investors away on holiday. 
 
 "I think more uncertainty lies ahead," Mr Madden said. 
 
 Investors might have to wait for several weeks for bargain hunters to come into the market to lift stocks. 
 
 Image copyright Getty Images Image caption India did not escape the global sell-off with the main index falling nearly 6% 
 
 Beijing's latest intervention, to allow its main state pension fund to invest in the stock market, failed to calm traders' fears, both in China and abroad. 
 
 Over the past week, the Shanghai index fell 12%, adding up to a 30% drop since the middle of June. 
 
 The sharp fall sparked a global sell-off, with the Dow Jones in the US losing 6%, while the FTSE 100 posted its biggest weekly loss this year, of 5%. 
 
 Earlier this month, the Chinese central bank devalued the yuan in an attempt to boost exports. 
 
 European investors worry that a cheaper Chinese currency will make European exports less competitive. 
 
 In other developments:
– It's a bleak start to the new year on Wall Street Monday morning: The Dow fell more than 360 points at the open after China's stock market suffered a huge plunge of its own. Chinese stocks fell 7%, spooking US investors worried about a global slowdown, reports the Wall Street Journal. The Nasdaq and S&P 500 were down similar percentages. "The rout in China is placing pressure on markets more globally, although it remains to be seen how long the hit to market sentiment will persist," says a note at Investec, per MarketWatch.