Market Update
Equities in Europe were trading lower, joining a global move down for stocks, as investors shunned risk assets in favor of perceived safe havens.
At the time of writing, Britain's FTSE fell 1.7%, France's CAC lost 2.1% while Germany's DAX was also trading 2.1% lower.
Bank shares were broadly lower as markets priced in a major slowdown in the global economy and, possibly, the United States falling back into recession: Barclays, BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank and Societe Generale erased between 3.5% and 5.4%. Miners BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Xstrata were down between 4% and 5.6% as metal prices took a knock.
Shares in Autonomy Corporation edged up 75% after Hewlett-Packard Group announced a takeover of the firm.
Elsewhere, Asian stocks fell heavily, tracking major losses on Wall Street.