LONDON: Stock markets mostly fell Thursday as fresh concerns about fallout from the Evergrande saga hit sentiment.
Bitcoin traded close to its record high reached Wednesday, while oil prices dropped.
Stock markets in Asia and Europe fell into the red as Chinese giant Evergrande said the planned sale of its property services arm had collapsed.
Resuming stock market trading after a more than two-week suspension, Evergrande also warned that it could not guarantee meeting its debt obligations, reigniting fears of contagion.
Shares in the embattled company tanked Thursday.
Justin Tang, of United First Partners, warned that "without the infusion of cash from the sale" of assets, the firm's share price "is going to take the elevator down".
"China's Evergrande crisis reared its ugly head again," noted AJ Bell financial analyst Danni Hewson.
"This hit stocks with Chinese exposure, most notably the mining sector."
There had been hope that the $2.58-billion sale of a 50.1 percent stake in Evergrande Property Services Group would provide it with much-needed capital to service its debts.
The news will again raise worries about the impact on the wider economy, with the property sector accounting for a huge chunk of China's gross domestic product and several other developers recently failing to meet debt payment deadlines.
Data this week showed the country's economic growth was slower than expected in the third quarter.
Still, top officials at the People's Bank of China and regulators have insisted the fallout from the crisis could be contained.
Elsewhere, bitcoin was sitting at $66,435.
European stocks steady, as bitcoin nears record high
The world's leading cryptocurrency on Wednesday hit a record high of $66,976 after a financial instrument dedicated to the unit made a successful debut on the New York Stock Exchange.
The digital unit has surged more than 50 percent over the past month and an eye-watering 450 percent in one year.
Key figures around 1045 GMT
London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.3 percent at 7,198.44 points
Frankfurt - DAX: DOWN 0.1 percent at 15,514.98
Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 0.2 percent at 6,689.73
EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 0.3 percent at 4,161.31
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.5 percent at 26,017.53 (close)
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.9 percent at 28,708.58 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.2 percent at 3,594.78 (close)
New York - Dow: UP 0.4 percent at 35,609.34 (close)
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1643 from $1.1654 at 2100 GMT
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3798 from $1.3825
Euro/pound: UP at 84.39 pence from 84.26 pence
Dollar/yen: DOWN at 113.99 from 114.33 yen
Brent North Sea crude: DOWN 1.1 percent at $84.84 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.5 percent at $83.00 per barrel
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