Picture used for illustrative purpose. File

European stock markets slid in opening deals on Friday, extending the previous day's sell-off, following a painful overnight rout on Wall Street that also spilled over into Asia.

In initial trade, London's benchmark FTSE 100 index dropped 0.2 per cent to 5,842.11 points, compared with the closing level on Thursday. In the eurozone, Frankfurt's DAX 30 index shed 0.9 per cent to 12,945.20 and the Paris CAC 40 lost 0.8 per cent to stand at 4,971.04 points.

New York stocks had plunged Thursday in a massive correction after their summer-long record rally, with the tech sector nursing particularly steep losses amid worries over a bubble in prices. 

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Both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq suffered dizzying drops -- diving 3.5 percent and 5.0 percent respectively to retreat from records set in the prior sessions, while the Dow tumbled 2.8 percent in value.

The news sent European equities sharply into reverse on Thursday, while Asian markets fell deep into negative territory on Friday.

"A ferocious sell off in US tech stocks spilled over into the broader market, dragging US indices sharply lower," noted City Index analyst Fiona Cincotta.

Agence France-Presse