Global markets take a beating after heavy losses on Wall Street as Donald Trump slams 'crazy' interest hikes

Markets across the world have slumped after heavy losses were recorded on Wall Street
AP

Global stock markets have taken a beating triggered by heavy losses on Wall Street and Donald Trump describing US interest rate hikes as “crazy”.

The Dow Jones and S&P 500 also fell by more than 3 per cent, with losses accelerating towards the end of trading.

Netflix fell 8 per cent, while Amazon slid 6 per cent.

The Nikkei index in Tokyo fell by almost 4 per cent on Thursday, while in Hong Kong the index was down 3.25 per cent.

Shanghai was off 2.5 per cent and reported to be at its lowest mark for four years.

It was triggered by a fall of more than 800 points in the Dow Jones industrial average on Wall Street yesterday, which was the worst drop in eight months and was led by sharp declines in technology stocks.

In earlier trade the FTSE100 index lost 1.3 per cent and the German Dax was dropped 2.2 per cent.

Investors are wary of possible further US interest rate hikes which will raise the cost of corporate borrowing and could drag on economic growth.

On Wednesday, President Trump said the Federal Reserve "is making a mistake" with its campaign of rate increases.

"I think the Fed has gone crazy," he said.

Stephen Innes of foreign exchange firm OANDA said Mr Trump's comments put pressure on the dollar but "the severity of this equity rout could bring the hawkish Fed narrative into question."

"If the Feds are crazy, this market reaction is bordering on insanity, as so many negative crosscurrents collide that is merely impossible to find a glint of optimism," he added.

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