Kiev - Ukraine's government on Friday ordered the stock market to stay closed, stopping shares trading by state instruction for the third time this week.

Management of the nation-leading PFTS stock exchange said it might allow shares trading later in the day, depending on the situation in both domestic and international markets.

The announcement came after a full day of trading on Thursday, during which stocks listed on the PFTS sank on average some 14 per cent in value.

The Ukrainian government halted trading on Wednesday and Monday as well in an a so-far unsuccessful attempt to slow panic sweeping the market, as Ukrainian shares have been dragged down by bad news in the US, Europe, and Asia.

Madrid - The Madrid stock market was dra

Moscow - Russia's market authorities still had not opened the MICEX and RTS exchanges for trading Friday afternoon after US stocks tumbled to five-year lows and world markets sank on fears of a recession.

The Federal Financial Markets Service said Friday it suspended trade indefinitely on both indexes "in view of dramatic breakdowns on stock exchanges in Europe, Asia and the United States."

Moscow's bourses have been assailed not only by the global financial crisis, but undercut by their reliance on energy commodities, with the drop in oil prices and a war with Georgia two months ago that spooked risk-averse investors.

Bangkok - Thailand's share prices plummeted 9.6 per cent Friday, prompting regulators to close the market for 30 minutes after midday trading when share values had dropped more than 10 per cent.

The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) index ended at 451.96, down 48.03 points, or 9.6 per cent.

After the midday break, the index slipped to 449.91, down 50.08 points, or 10.02 per cent, prompting authorities to close trading for half an hour in keeping with the bourse's regulations.

The bourse resumed trading in the afternoon.

Kuala Lumpur - Malaysian shares dropped 3.6 per cent Friday on panic selling after dips in global markets.

The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index closed at 934.01, down 34.88 points.

Losses were seen in all sectors of the economy but were particularly strong in the financial and construction industries.

Stock analysts attributed the drop to panic selling by investors because of increasing uncertainty in global markets.

"Everything looks a bit gloomy now," a broker at a local investment institution said.

Bucharest - Romania's Bucharest Stock Exchange halted regular trading Friday for the second time this week, as the massive global sell-off hit Eastern Europe's fastest-growing economy.

Seeking to stem panic selling, exchange officials blocked transactions right at the start of Friday's session and drastically shortened the trading day to 15 minutes, news reports said.

Otherwise, the broad-based BET-C index would have plunged 15 per cent after the latest share plunge on Wall Street and in Asian markets, said Stere Farmache, the exchange's general manager.