Amman - Arab stock markets dived for the fourth day in a row Wednesday amid a spiraling lack of confidence that the world financial crisis could be brought under control within a reasonable time, financial analysts said.

However, two of the major regional markets, the Saudi and Kuwaiti stock exchanges, trimmed their losses at a later stage apparently in response to local and global steps taken to stem the turmoil, including the reduction of prime interest rates by the world's leading central banks.

Mumbai, Oct. 8 :The Bombay Stock Exchange''s 30-share Sensex, which slumped by more than 8 percent to its lowest in over two years as panic gripped investors after overseas markets tanked on concerns of a looming global recession, staged a recovery in afternoon trading on Wednesday (October 8).

By 2:35 p. m. (local time), the 30-share main index was down 3.26 percent, or 380 points, at 11314.76, after hitting 10,740.76, its lowest since August 01, 2006.

Singapore  - Singapore stocks fell by 6.61 per cent Wednesday as fears of a glo

Bangkok - Thai shares lost 6.88 per cent Wednesday on pessimism about the US financial crisis and 700-billion-dollar bail-out.

The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) index ended at 492.34, down 36.37 points or 6.88 per cent, crashing past the 500-point psychological barrier.

The freefall followed a day of bloody street fighting in the capital Tuesday that left two dead and 437 injured, but the hubbub had quieted down by Wednesday.

Kiev - Ukraine's government on Wednesday ordered the country's leading PFTS stock exchange to stay closed throughout the day, the Interfax news agency reported.

The decision came after the market hit a record low on Tuesday, and was widely predicted to continue a plunge of as much as 12 per cent a day, observers said.

The PFTS lost 11 per cent overall value on Tuesday, with banks plummeting between 22 to 26 per cent, and metals producers slumping 13 to 16 per cent, the Dragon Capitol trading house reported.

Ukraine's government has been locked in a constitutional crisis for more than two months and has struggled to take steps to control economic damage from recent drops in foreign shares exchanges.