Stocks Take a Tumble

Asian shares, whose recent volatility has pressured the U.S., traded in a wide range overnight, and one of the hardest hit was the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo, down 1.4%. Meanwhile, China's stocks firmed. The Shanghai and Shenzhen 300 advanced 1.4%, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng tacked on half a percent.

Equities in western Europe were mixed, rebounding from their worst levels. London's FTSE 100 was flat, Frankfurt's Xetra DAX gave up 0.6%, and the Paris Cac 40 was lower by 0.6%.

"There's a host of concerns that have buffeted markets all week long," said Art Hogan, chief market analyst with Jefferies. "The market has had to go through a long-awaited corrective process. There's not a new catalyst for the selloff. We're going to continue to be volatile as we deal with this."

Back in the U.S., Dell (DELL Quote) finished higher by 0.7% even after the PC maker said its financial results will be under pressure for the foreseeable future. The comments came after the company said sales in the latest quarter dropped 5% year over year to $14.4 billion. Dell tacked on 17 cents to $23.18.

Also after the bell Thursday, Dow component AIG (AIG Quote) said that adjusted fourth-quarter earnings came in below expectations. However, the insurance company said it will buy back up to $5 billion of stock during 2007. AIG added $2.13, or 3.2%, to $69.54.