Most European shares fell after the release of US unemployment data, which sent New York's Dow Jones down slightly adding to Thursday's losses.
The Dax in Frankfurt lost 0.8% and the Cac 40 in Paris slipped 1.4% though London's FTSE 100 edged slightly ahead.
Earlier, Japan's Nikkei 225 had fallen 3.5% taking its lead from sharp Wall Street losses.
Payrolls figures for February showed that 651,000 jobs had been cut while the jobless rate rose to 8.1%.
Japan woes
In Japan, exporters' stocks tumbled on Friday, amid fears that the strengthening yen would make their products uncompetitive.
The Nikkei closed down 260.4 points at 7,173.1.
Shares in Honda Motor, the country's second-biggest car company, fell 3.8%.
Shares in Mizuho Financial Group, Japan's second-largest bank, slipped 2.7%, taking their lead from sharp falls in Citigroup stock in the US, which fell below $1 for the first time on Thursday.
"If you see fire breaking out in someone else's house, it causes worries about your own, too. The latest development in the US corporate sector is very worrisome," said YS Rhoo, a market analyst at Hyundai Securities in Seoul.
US shares were knocked on Thursday when auditors expressed "substantial doubt" that General Motors could stay afloat. Shares in the carmaker closed down more than 15%.
'Signs of recovery'
Investor hopes that China would expand its stimulus package had pushed markets higher earlier in the week, but shares fell around the world on Thursday when Premier Wen Jiabao failed to announced any expansion of the package.
The Dax in Frankfurt lost 0.8% and the Cac 40 in Paris slipped 1.4% though London's FTSE 100 edged slightly ahead.
Earlier, Japan's Nikkei 225 had fallen 3.5% taking its lead from sharp Wall Street losses.
Payrolls figures for February showed that 651,000 jobs had been cut while the jobless rate rose to 8.1%.
Japan woes
In Japan, exporters' stocks tumbled on Friday, amid fears that the strengthening yen would make their products uncompetitive.
The Nikkei closed down 260.4 points at 7,173.1.
Shares in Honda Motor, the country's second-biggest car company, fell 3.8%.
Shares in Mizuho Financial Group, Japan's second-largest bank, slipped 2.7%, taking their lead from sharp falls in Citigroup stock in the US, which fell below $1 for the first time on Thursday.
"If you see fire breaking out in someone else's house, it causes worries about your own, too. The latest development in the US corporate sector is very worrisome," said YS Rhoo, a market analyst at Hyundai Securities in Seoul.
US shares were knocked on Thursday when auditors expressed "substantial doubt" that General Motors could stay afloat. Shares in the carmaker closed down more than 15%.
'Signs of recovery'
Investor hopes that China would expand its stimulus package had pushed markets higher earlier in the week, but shares fell around the world on Thursday when Premier Wen Jiabao failed to announced any expansion of the package.
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