* Wall Street poised to plummet at open

* Futures frozen after sharp dive

* Concern over state of global economy fuels drop

* Grim corporate profit outlook weighs too (Recasts first paragraph, adds details)

By Leah Schnurr

NEW YORK, Oct 24 (Reuters) - Wall Street was poised to plummet at the opening bell on Friday, after U.S. stock index futures dove so steeply that they had to be frozen at several points as global markets were battered by signs the global economy is in the throes of recession.

Global markets were down 4 percent as measured by the MSCI's all-country world index .MIWD00000PUS, while panicked investors moved to liquidate risky positions. Japan's Nikkei index .N225 ended down nearly 10 percent and European shares lost 8 percent. For more see [MKTS/GLOB].

In New York, December Dow Jones futures DJZ8 were down 6.3 percent, Standard & Poor's 500 futures SPZ8 were off 6.6 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures NDZ8 were down 6.8 percent.

All three contracts lost the maximum amount permissible before the start of futures trading in the United States.