Global equity markets fell yesterday, pulled lower by concerns about slumping crude oil prices and whether they are a sign of slower growth, while the dollar slipped against the yen on views the Bank of Japan may not ease policy as much as expected.

Equity investors were cautious in the wake of the euphoria that followed the US Federal Reserve’s first interest rate hike in almost a decade earlier in the week. But trading in oil was volatile.

The yen gained after the BoJ merely tweaked its monthly asset-purchase program.

The move put a pause in the dollar’s rise in recent months on views that the Fed’s likely decision to raise rates and the BoJ’s path of more potential stimulus would drive investment into higher-yielding US assets.

The dollar, which had hit a more than two-week high of 123.590 yen, fell 0.95 per cent to 121.39.

The euro rose 0.12 per cent against the dollar at $1.0838 .

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six other major currencies, fell 0.39 per cent at 98.879.

Equities suffered from fatigue after markets rose in anticipation of the Fed move, while the slumping price of oil was driving investor sentiment on concerns over global growth and a growing supply surplus.

MSCI’s all-country world stock index fell 1.0 per cent, while the FTSEurofirst 300 index of leading European share closed down 1.05 per cent at 1,419.35.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 271.01 points, or 1.55 per cent, to 17,224.83. The S&P 500 slid 25.92 points, or 1.27 per cent, to 2,015.97 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 58.65 points, or 1.17 per cent, to 4,943.91.

Crude oil retreated following a rebound of almost one per cent after the US benchmark traded well below $35 a barrel.

Global benchmark Brent crude fell 1.13 per cent to $36.64 a barrel, while US crude futures tumbled 1.72 per cent to $34.35 a barrel.

Prices on US Treasuries rose in choppy trading on rising investor skepticism over the Fed’s ability to raise interest rates as much as it would like next year.

The decline in crude and tumbling stock markets encouraged investors to seek the relative safety of US government debt. The slide in oil prices suggests inflation will remain benign.

The benchmark 10-year US Treasury note rose 14/32 in price to yield 2.1882 per cent.