Wayne ColeSYDNEY/LONDON, Aug 5 (Reuters) - Stock markets tumbled on Monday, with Japanese shares at one point exceeding their 1987 "Black Monday" loss, as fears of a U.S. recession sent investors fleeing from risk while wagering that rate cuts would be needed to rescue growth.
The safe haven yen and Swiss franc surged, as crowded carry trades unraveled, sparking speculation that some investors were unloading profitable trades to get money to cover losses elsewhere. Such was the torrent of selling that circuit breakers were triggered on stock exchanges across Asia.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei average (.N225), opens new tab closed 12.40% lower at 31,458.42, its largest one-day fall since October 1987, while the broader Topix (.TOPX), opens new tab lost 12.48% to 2,220.91.
European stocks (.STOXX), opens new tab opened 1.8% lower with France's CAC 40 (.FCHI), opens new tab down 2.1%, Spain's IBEX (.IBEX), opens new tab down 2.8% the UK's FTSE 100 (.FTSE), opens new tab off 1.7% on fears of a global recession after weak U.S. data.
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