US stocks were depressed yesterday as Wall Street fretted about escalating tensions between India and Pakistan and more bad news from the battered semiconductor sector.
European share prices slid to levels not seen for months, following US markets deeper into loss.
The latest falls left leading European markets at, or close to, their lowest point for three months, while, across the 12-nation euro zone, the Euro Stoxx 50 index flirted with levels last seen in October.
The dollar sank to 15-month lows against the euro and a six-month nadir against the yen. The single European currency jumped to $0.94 - its highest level since February 2001. It later slipped back to stand at $0.9374, against $0.9260 late on Wednesday in New York.
The Dow Jones industrial average was down 11.35 points at 9911.69. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 Index slid 3 points to 1064.66.
The Nasdaq Composite was up 7.52 points to 1,631.91.
"I think a lot of people's mind are at Ground Zero today," said Mr Peter Coolidge, a senior equity trader at Brean Murray & Co. "It's depressing when you have to rekindle these things."
