US stocks plunged as world markets rejected the wait-and-see stance on the global financial crisis taken by US Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan and central bank chiefs from other major nations.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 216.01 - or by 2.7 per cent - to 7,873.77, giving back nearly half of the 475 points gained in the prior four sessions. Broader stock indicators also took a heavy beating as the latest global selloff muzzled the optimistic rally of recent days.

The Standard and Poor's 500 fell 26.62 to 1,018.86, and the technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index fell 43.66 to 1,642.25. Declining issues outnumbered advancers by an eight-to-three margin on the New York Stock Exchange, with 834 up, 2,246 down and 451 unchanged. NYSE volume totalled 691.84 million shares as of 4 p.m. The NYSE composite index fell 11.74 to 506.31, and the American Stock Exchange composite index fell 7.88 to 621.25.