FTSE falls for third straight day

Wednesday, 02 June 2010 12:03

By myfinances.co.uk staff

The FTSE 100 slumped for a third day in early trading this morning falling 53.47 points, or 1 per cent, to 5,109.83 after the US opened criminal and civil investigations into the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and the resignation of Japan's prime minister weakened commodity prices.

BP dropped 2.3 per cent to 419.95p. The US Justice Department has opened criminal and civil investigations into the Gulf of Mexico spill, the worst in US history.

Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama said he'll step down less than two months before elections, raising concerns that the world's second-largest economy will continue to sputter at the same time that China takes steps to cool growth and European nations struggle amid record deficits.

BHP Billiton, the world's biggest mining company, declined 1.4 per cent to 1,849p. Rio Tinto, the third largest, retreated 1.9 per cent to 3,091.5p. Copper, nickel, and tin fell on the London Metal Exchange.

GlaxoSmithKline climbed 1.6 per cent to 1,177.5p, for a fifth straight day of gains. Jefferies International upgraded the shares to "buy" from "hold," saying it is looking towards a "period of more sustainable earnings growth."

May Gurney Integrated Services surged 3.5 per cent to 210p after the road-and-rail engineering company reported a 7 per cent advance in pre-tax profit before items as more clients outsourced contracts for services such as waste disposal and road repairs.

Tate & Lyle, the maker of low-calorie sweetener Splenda, rallied 4.2 per cent to 445.2p after Royal Bank of Scotland upgraded the shares to "buy" from "hold," saying it sees "the current valuation as an attractive entry point."

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