FTSE in negative territory
Investors took cover today after heavy losses on Asian exchanges were compounded by a lacklustre reaction to new banking sector figures.
The FTSE 100 Index slipped as much as 36 points in early trading before recovering some poise to reach mid-morning 16.3 points lower at 5512.5.
Traders talked of panic selling in Japan after rumours of an erroneous trade pushed the Nikkei down by 300 points and sent ripples across the region, with the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong also giving up more than 250 points.
Investors were also cautious ahead of the Bank of England’s decision on interest rates.
Banking stocks were among those in negative territory as the market expressed disappointment at Royal Bank of Scotland’s failure to follow rivals such as HBOS by upping its earnings guidance.
Despite stating its confidence in meeting hopes and flagging signs that bad debts may be levelling off, RBS declined by as much as 2% before settling 13p lower at 1698p, a decline of less than 1%.
Among its rivals, HSBC slipped 9p to 919.5p, Alliance & Leicester fell 6.5p to 936p and Barclays eased 2.5p to 600.5p.
Others on the slide today included Standard Chartered – off 37p at 1178p – as investors continued to react negatively to its trading update yesterday and Northern Rock, which fell 4.5p to 885.5p.
The main bright spot was PartyGaming after the poker giant said it was likely to top hopes for its annual results. PartyGaming shares lifted 9% or 10.5p to 127.5p to stand at their highest level since September.
It was followed on the risers board by retailer Marks & Spencer, which continued to pull away from the level of 00p a share offered by tycoon Philip Green last year. Amid hopes of a recovery in high street trading conditions, M&S stood at 461.75p, a gain of 6.25p.
