LONDON, Oct 16 (Reuters) - European stocks ended steeply lower on Thursday, with banks leading the decline as global equities slid on investors' fears of a global recession, and oil shares tracked tumbling crude. The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares unofficially ended down 5.5 percent at 853.81 points. Across Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE dropped 5.7 percent, Germany's DAX .GDAXI lost 4.9 percent and France's CAC .FCHI shed 5.9 percent. Major U.S. stock indexes slid between 1 and 2 percent as the VIX volatility index -- Wall Street's fear gauge -- shot to record highs above 80 points. Among European banks, HSBC (HSBA.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) shed 4 percent, Santander (SAN.MC: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) lost 6.5 percent and BNP Paribas (BNPP.PA: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) dropped 7 percent. Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) shed more than 7 percent and Total (TOTF.PA: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) lost more than 9 percent as crude oil tumbled 7.5 percent to below $70 a barrel. (Reporting by Rebekah Curtis)

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