Stock markets in Asia, Europe and the United States plunged Tuesday in a broad sell-off as analysts said investors feared the possibility of a nuclear catastrophe in Japan.
Investors dumped stock holdings as Japanese officials warned of increased radiation around an earthquake-damaged nuclear plant. Market analysts said investors were increasingly worried about the economic impact of last Friday's devastating earthquake off the coast of Japan and the tsunami that quickly followed it.
One analyst said there was "no arguing with panic" in the sell-off. Another said that in the plunging market, traders sell stocks and "ask questions later."
Major U.S. stock indexes opened down more than 2 percent following a broad sell-off in Asia and Europe. Tokyo's Nikkei index closed down more than 10 percent, following a 6 percent drop on Monday. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell nearly 3 percent.
In Europe, stock markets spiraled down, with the DAX index in Frankfurt retreating nearly 5 percent, London markets off more than 2 percent and Paris dropping nearly 4 percent.
Japan's government tried to reassure markets and businesses after the disaster, putting a record $183 billion into money markets Monday and pumping another $61 billion into the financial system Tuesday.
Japan was already trying to cope with slow economic growth and high levels of government debt before the quake and tsunami. The extent of the economic impact of the disaster is still not known.
Economists say the nation's growth rate will probably slow in the short run as business and industry cope with power shortages, damaged transportation facilities, and other problems. But they say over the longer term, the need to rebuild damaged cities and infrastructure in the affected area could stimulate the Japanese economy and improve growth.
Investors dumped stock holdings as Japanese officials warned of increased radiation around an earthquake-damaged nuclear plant. Market analysts said investors were increasingly worried about the economic impact of last Friday's devastating earthquake off the coast of Japan and the tsunami that quickly followed it.
One analyst said there was "no arguing with panic" in the sell-off. Another said that in the plunging market, traders sell stocks and "ask questions later."
Major U.S. stock indexes opened down more than 2 percent following a broad sell-off in Asia and Europe. Tokyo's Nikkei index closed down more than 10 percent, following a 6 percent drop on Monday. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell nearly 3 percent.
In Europe, stock markets spiraled down, with the DAX index in Frankfurt retreating nearly 5 percent, London markets off more than 2 percent and Paris dropping nearly 4 percent.
Japan's government tried to reassure markets and businesses after the disaster, putting a record $183 billion into money markets Monday and pumping another $61 billion into the financial system Tuesday.
Japan was already trying to cope with slow economic growth and high levels of government debt before the quake and tsunami. The extent of the economic impact of the disaster is still not known.
Economists say the nation's growth rate will probably slow in the short run as business and industry cope with power shortages, damaged transportation facilities, and other problems. But they say over the longer term, the need to rebuild damaged cities and infrastructure in the affected area could stimulate the Japanese economy and improve growth.
