FTSE battered by falling oil and metals prices
Wednesday, 03 Sep 2008 17:26
Ongoing falls in oil and metals prices hit FTSE 100
Ongoing falls in oil and metals prices sent the FTSE 100 plummeting 121 points to 5,499.70 at close of trade, with shares down across all sectors.
Only 3i Group, BAE Systems and British Energy Group saw their stocks rise by the end of the day.
Overall, the FTSE fell 2.15 per cent from yesterday's close.
Ukrainian iron ore miner Ferrexpo led the fall and was down 15.42 per cent to 211.25p, followed closely by Enterprise Inns which dropped 8.79 per cent to 280.25p.
Both are expected to exit the FTSE 100 index when it is updated later this month.
The UK's benchmark index is dominated by mining and energy stocks, which make up 40 per cent of its weighting.
As the oil price continues to slide – now hovering around $108 a barrel from its July high of $147 – energy stocks are shedding their value.
Even sectors that benefit from the lower oil price are still seeing falls in their share value, due to the drop in consumer spending.