UK stocks hit a three-month low after a major sell-off in US tech shares triggered a global market plunge.

The FTSE 100 fell by 0.8%, while the FTSE 250 dropped 1.1% as trading opened, following a sell-off sparked by declining profits at Tesla, the world’s largest electric car maker.

US stock markets experienced their worst losses since 2022 on Wednesday as investors rapidly sold shares in companies that had benefited from the AI boom.

Asian shares also plummeted overnight, with Tokyo’s benchmark Nikkei 225 losing over 1,000 points at one stage, driven by pessimism around the “Magnificent Seven” group of megacap companies on Wall Street.

The world's only $3 trillion companies dragged down markets: Nvidia fell 6.8%, Apple dropped 2.9%, and Microsoft decreased by 3.6%. Tesla's stock fell by 12%.

Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA, noted that while this week's profit reports from Tesla and Alphabet were not disastrous, they raised concerns among investors about other market heavyweights' upcoming results. He remarked, "How many disappointments are we likely to see? Maybe let’s sell first and ask questions later."