Global markets reactions to falling shares

Plunging global stock markets are raising fears among investors while governments are urging caution and calm.

The slide in global stocks was set off by the billions of dollars lost in the banking industry because of problems in the US housing market. Investors are worried the slide will continue.

Naveen, Indian Investor, said, "At present, it's not an investors market and so keep away from the market. "

Geoff Wilson, Wolson Asset Management, Australia, said, "This fall in the market is very severe and, really, what it's doing is, I think there's a fracturing of confidence and so you'll see the impact of that over the next six to nine months."

In Tokyo, Tuesday marked the second day of a frenetic sell-off, with the benchmark Nikkei index falling nearly 18 percent so far this year.

Japan's Finance Minister is urging a cautious approach.

Fukushiro Nukaga, Japanese Finance Minister, said, "We must consider carefully after observing the upcoming economic figures and market trend. It's not yet time to be swinging between hope and despair,"

India's shares were volatile Tuesday with markets closing for nearly an hour in the morning after steep plunges on the country's two major indexes.

India's Finance Minister says the situation is not as dire as it seems.

Palaniappan Chidambaram, Indian Finance Minister, said, "My advice to investors is to stay calm. The economy will grow this year at close to nine percent. There's no reason at all to allow the worries of the Western world to overwhelm us."

European finance ministers admitted Monday they could not rule out the possibility of a recession in the US but also said it would be wrong to make hasty judgments.

Jean-Claude Juncker, Eurogroup President, said, "Compared with the US, our fundamentals are very solid. So far, the European economy has not been hit by the turbulence on the financial markets and we continue to assume that the impact will be fairly limited"

But analysts warn if there is a recession trend in the U.S., it could lead to weakening growth rates in Europe and the Euro zone.