London shares had a volatile start today, as investors remained cautious following sharp sell-offs seen yesterday.
After an hour’s trading the FTSE 100 Index was up 26.6 points at 3840.1, reversing an initial 49-point slide into the red.
Yesterday stocks plummeted towards the 3,800 mark as poor corporate updates from America and concerns about the potential for a US strike against Iraq continued to weigh on shares.
Wall Street closed sharply lower last night, partly due to a warning from IT outsourcing group Electronic Data Systems and poor economic data.
The slide made traders in London nervous this morning, but despite the initial sell-off shares managed to repair some of yesterday’s losses.
Oil groups edged higher following yesterday’s falls, with BP up 8p at 441p and Shell rising 4.5p at 388p.
Defence group BAE Systems, which slumped more than 13% yesterday, put on 4p to 177.5p.
And British Airways marked its last day in the FTSE with a 2.5p rise to 114p. The airline is being ejected from the index on Monday following the FTSE’s latest quarterly reshuffle.
But offsetting some of the gains were retailers, which fell back following rises in the sector yesterday following upbeat industry figures.
Marks & Spencer slipped 24p to 686p, Boots was 2.5p lower at 511.5p and William Morrison Supermarkets fell 2.5p to 215.5p.
Outside the FTSE, Railtrack Group rose 7.5p to 246p as it emerged shareholders would receive a higher-than-expected payout. Investors are expected to be paid between 252p and 260p, rather than the 245p to 255p originally forecast.
EGi News 20/09/02
