Global markets fall as Europe reaches stalemate

Asian shares suffered overnight and European indices plunged today as investors fretted over the lack of progress towards solving Europe's debt crisis.

Fresh protests against Greek austerity cuts provided a bleak backdrop for the ongoing struggle to tackle the crisis, ahead of the G20 summit in Brussels this weekend. French President Nicolas Sarkozy said Germany and France are divided on how to expand the region's emergency rescue fund. The Hang Seng saw the steepest fall, dropping 2.37% to 17,876, with Tokyo's Nikkei 225 dropping 0.92% to 8,691 and Sydney's ASX down 1.59% to 4,207. The MSCI Asia Pacific index also fell 1.2%, heading to its lowest close in over a week. Benchmarks in Singapore, Taiwan, mainland China, and Indonesi...