Dollar slides against euro as German business confidence rises (AFP)
AFP - The dollar fell against the euro, primarily as the European currency benefitted from robust German business confidence figures, traders said.
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FTSE sheds 5.35 percent (AFP)
2008.10.1713 minutes ago
LONDON (AFP) - The London FTSE 100 index of leading shares fell 5.35 percent Thursday to close at 3,861.39 points as recession clouds deepened over the US economy.
Elsewhere, the CAC 40 lost 5.92 percent to finish at 3,181 in paris and the Frankfurt Dax closed 4.91 percent in negative territory at 4,622.81.
European markets tracked Wall Street, where the Dow Jones Industrial Average sank deep in the red in early trading on news of a sharp plunge in September industrial orders, strengthening prospects for a recession in the world's largest economy.
In London, Vodafone was the most traded stock, seeing 286 million units change hands, followed by BP, which saw 139 million shares switch owners.
Lonmin slumped 12 percent to 1,235 pence, while Anglo American slipped 14 percent to 1,142 pence. French steelmaker ArcelorMittal tumbled 8.7 percent to 20.09 wuros.
Oil stocks also fell as ICE Brent crude futures dropped more than 5 US dollars a barrel to their lowest levels since the end of May 2007. The November contract last traded at 65.71 US dollars a barrel.
France's Total slipped 8.6 percent to 33.41 euros, while Italy's ENI lost 6.4 percent to 14.18 euros. In London, BP shed 4.9 percent to 394 pence.
Nokia, the world's largest maker of mobile phones, said third-quarter net profit fell 30 percent amid intense competition and the global economic slowdown, slightly missing expectations, but said it is well positioned to face the downturn. Nokia shares fell 4.2 percent to 11.30 euros.
Rexam was the best blue chip performer, up 4.47 percent at 309.5, followed by Centrica, which climbed 1.24 percent to 287.75.
Thomas Cook was the day's biggest faller, slipping a massive 23.3 percent to finish at 145.2, followed by TUI Travel, which was down 22.2 percent at 194.4.
Meanwhile, the pound was up against the dollar, climbing from 1.7152 US dollars at the close Wednesday to a value of 1.7239 USD at 16:58 BST, while the UK currency also rose against the euro, from 1.2732 to 1.2843 between the same times.
-- Dow Jones Newswires contributed to this story --
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