LONDON, Dhu-AlHijjah 07, 1437, September 09, 2016, SPA -- European stocks fell sharply on Friday, dropping suddenly in afternoon trade following a sell-off on Wall Street as investors reacted to less dovish than expected signals from central bankers on both sides of the Atlantic, Reuters reported. The pan-European STOXX 600 index was down 1.1 percent, the biggest one-day fall for the index since the start of August, after a summer which has seen a tight trading range persist for two months. The fall added to a pullback from the previous session after some investors expressed disappointment at the fact that the European Central Bank (ECB) had not discussed an extension of the timetable for its economic stimulus programme at its policy meeting on Thursday. European stocks fell sharply along with Wall Street after U.S. Federal Reserve official Eric Rosengren, traditionally viewed as a dove, said there were risks associated with not raising rates soon. Some traders said a nuclear test by North Korea had also hit sentiment. The dollar rose as investors speculated that a September rate hike had become more likely, and German 10-year bond yields rose above zero for the first time since June as investors assessed the difficulties that central banks face. Europe's STOXX 600 had hit an eight-month high on Monday, but ended the week down 1.4 percent. U.S. volatility index VIX, which is a crude measure of investor caution, surged to its highest level since July. The European equivalent ticked up to a lesser extent, to a one-week high. Falls were broad based, with every sector bar financials, which have suffered from lower interest rates, in negative territory. --SPA 21:18 LOCAL TIME 18:18 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w