Global markets in freefall; FTSE opens 1.4% lower

Global markets are in freefall today following Wall Street’s slide on Friday and on fears over a Greek-style crisis in Hungary.

The FTSE 100 has opened -1.41% lower to 5,053.87. Rio Tinto leads the losses, down 3.56% - followed by Lloyds and RBS, 3.17% and 3.04% lower respectively.

In Europe, Paris' CAC 40 is 1.56% lower to and Frankfurt's Dax is down 1.06% to . The euro has also fallen to a fresh four-year low against the dollar.

The fresh fears for the single currency surround Hungary, which is wildely thought to be in more fiscal strife. The Eastern European country was bailed out in 2008 by the EU and IMF and is set to adopt the euro in 2014.

Asian stocks were smashed in Monday trading, with the Nikkei 225 plummeting 3.84% to 9,520.80 yen. Hong Kong's Hang Seng finished 2.25% lower to 19,334.09.

US markets were punished on Friday after the release of worse-than-expected jobs figures. The Dow Jones IA fell to its worst close since February, down 3.15% to 9,931.97. Caterpillar and American express led the losses, both down more than 5%.

The broader S&P 500 dived 3.44% to 1,064.88 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 3.64% to 2,219.17.