BBC在线收听下载:全球股市遭遇暴跌

This is the BBC News. Hello, I'm Jonathan Izard.

The US Vice President Mike Pence has warned the world not to be taken in by the North Korea's participation in the Winter Olympics. Mr. Pence who will attend the opening ceremony of the Game on Friday, said the event's powerful symbolism must not be used to paper over the truth.

We will be ensuring that whatever cooperation that is existing between North and South Korea today on Olympics teams, does not cloud the reality of the regime that must continue to be isolated by the world community and it must be brought to place where it ends its provocations and ends its development and possession of nuclear weapons and ballistic missile weapons.
Mr. Pence is bringing as guest to the game the father of Otto Warmbier, an American student who died of severe injury last year after being imprisoned in North Korea.

European share prices have hit their lowest level since 2016 following sharp drops in Asia and United States. London, Frankfurt and Paris all recorded losses about to 3% on opening before recovering some ground. From Frankfurt, here is Damien McGuinness.

In Frankfurt, when the Dax of the Germen Stock Market open this morning, we saw the biggest fall in one half year that was down by 3.6%. So the question is whether this is just a bleed or whether it's a start of a wide market correction? What unrealistic thing is that this doesn't look like it's gonna turn into anything more serious for now prices are sort of going up again. And that's really because the ECB unlike in other areas in the world, it's not looking to raise interest rates any time immediate future.

The slump has been caused by investors around the world, rushing to sell stocks and fear of arising interest rate in the US.

The news just in the South Africa Parliament has announced the postponement of the State of the National Address due to be given by the embattled President Jacob Zuma on Thursday. He's come under increasing pressure from colleagues to resign of corruption allegations since losing the ANC leadership in December to Cyril Ramaphosa. Now, new date has been set by parliamentary speaker. The ANC's National Executive Committee is due to meet on Wednesday and has the power to recall a president.

This is the world news from the BBC.