TOKYO - Stock markets plunged worldwide Friday with turmoil from the U.S. mortgage crisis rippling across the globe.

Stock markets in Europe fell, unappeased by the European Central Bank’s decision to inject another 61 billion euros into the banking system Friday, a day after it provided nearly 95 billion euros ($130.8 billion), the bank’s biggest infusion ever.

The Nikkei 225 index dropped 406.51 points, or 2.37 percent, to close at 16,764.09 points on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. The broader Topix index of all shares on the exchange’s first section sank 49.88 points, or 2.96 percent, to 1,633.93 points.

London’s FTSE 100 dropped 2.6 percent to 6,107.50, the CAC-40 in Paris fell 2.4 percent to 5,491.81 and Germany’s DAX index down 1.7 percent to 7,330.21.

Matt Buckland, at CMC Markets, said the heavy losses on Wall Street on Thursday, along with a lack of economic or corporate data due for release during the session, would push markets even lower. The recent market volatility has wiped more than 500 points off London’s benchmark index over the last month.

“Critically, many are now going to be looking for that big 6,000 level on the London index,” he said.

Many of the declines were in the banking sector, with Commerzbank down 4.7 percent, Deutsche Bank dropping 6.1 percent, Societe Generale falling 5.8 percent and BNP Paribas — which on Thursday announced the suspension of three asset-backed securities funds, saying it could no longer determine their worth — off 4 percent.

Shares in Allianz SE, Europe’s biggest insurer by gross premiums, fell nearly 3 percent after it said it has $2.3 billion of exposure to the U.S. subprime market — or about 0.16 percent of its 1.03 euros trillion ($1.41 trillion) in total investments.

The Korea Composite Stock Price Index fell 80.19 points, or 4.2 percent, to 1,828.49, with issues falling across the board, especially financial stocks. The Kospi fell as much as 5 percent in intraday trade.

The plunge came after the Dow Jones industrial average fell 387.18, or 2.83 percent, to 13,270.68 in New York on Thursday. Trans-Atlantic angst appears to be bouncing back and forth, with the U.S. markets falling after Paribas in France said it was freezing funds that invested in U.S. subprime mortgages.

In Asia, short-term investors led the selling on concerns that hemorrhaging the subprime sector could spill over, said Song Seng Wun, regional economist with Singapore’s CIMB-GK Research Pte.

“There is no answer at this point,” Song said. “But there hasn’t been any panic selling. The long-term people are still looking and waiting.”

Amid Friday’s decline, the Bank of Japan said it injected 1 trillion yen ($8.39 billion) into money markets to curb rises in a key overnight interest rate.

The injection followed similar moves by its European and U.S. counterparts overnight.

The European Central Bank provided nearly 95 billion euros ($130.8 billion) to money markets, the bank’s biggest infusion ever.

The U.S. Federal Reserve also added a larger-than-normal $24 billion in temporary reserves to the U.S. banking system.

Turbulence in international markets affect the Korean index, said Kang Moon-sung, a strategist at Korea Investment and Securities Co.

“No one is confident this level is (the) bottom,” Kang said.

The index has been on a tear for most of this year, rising as much as 40 percent. Last month, the benchmark closed past 2,000 for the first time.

Japan’s top government spokesman Yasuhisa Shiozaki tried to play down the fears about the fallout on the world’s second largest economy.

“Our economy is recovering smoothly, spurred by private sector demand,” Shiozaki told reporters Friday. “The government will continue to closely watch share prices and overall economic indicators,” he said.

Overseas markets SYMBOL LAST CHANGE   % CHANGE FTSE (London) 6101.80 -169.40 -2.70% DAX (Frankfurt) 7355.13 -98.46 -1.32% Nikkei 225 (Tokyo) 16764.09 -406.51 -2.37% Enter company symbol Look up symbol Data: MSN Money and ComStock

Asian markets across the region have followed the general slump.

Hong Kong’s blue chip Hang Seng Index shed 646.7 points, or 2.9 percent, to finish at 21,792.70.

Singapore’s Straits Times Index closed down 54 points, or 1.6 percent, to 3,359.20.

The Phillipine benchmark index was also off 3 percent, while the standard market measure in Australia finished down 3.7 percent.

Markets fell also in Bangkok, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Mumbai, Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney, Taipei and New Zealand.

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