Stocks sell off as wave of fear and worry washes over markets again

Stock markets slumped further into the red on Monday, as investors were washed over by a wave of fear and uncertainty about what could be coming to the global economy.

Major U.S. stock groupings such as the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq all entered official correction territory, which means they have declined by at least 10 per cent from their recent peaks.

Early in the afternoon, the Dow was off by 800 points, or more than two per cent, the broader S&P 500 was down by slightly more, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq was faring worst of all with