One of the most action-packed trading sessions in the past few weeks saw the London stock market's leaders finally run out of puff and back off from the elevated levels that drove the two main FTSE indices to record highs.
Weakness in the front-line stocks was mainly concentrated in a handful of important sectors; the mortgage and savings banks, food retailers and pharmaceuticals. But it was a drinks company, Allied Domecq, that took the dubious accolade of being the worst individual FTSE 100 constituent.
After a day of persistent, although never heavy selling the FTSE 100 finished the day a net 101.2 lower at 6,497.6, just short of a session low of 6,493.6. At its worst yesterday the index was down 105.2.
Wall Street gave every support to London, the Dow Jones Industrial Average nudging ahead overnight and maintaining its advance yesterday, when the New York benchmark topped 10,900.
But the weakness in the FTSE leaders was never evident in the mid and small-cap stocks.
The setback in the leading stocks was the first since the near 200point retreat by the Footsie almost two weeks ago and was not viewed as any more than continued switching activity out of the market's big Footsie winners of the past couple of years - telecoms and pharmaceuticals - into the more cyclical stocks.
