Posted on 03/05/2007 7:17:29 AM PST by blam
FTSE falls as global sell-off gathers pace By Stephen Seawright Last Updated: 3:04pm GMT 05/03/2007
A nervous investor climate forced down shares in London as a global stock-market sell-off enters its second week.
A stock index board in Tokyo reflects the latest market falls
The FTSE100 briefly dropped below the 6,000 mark for the first time since October before recovering to 6,018, down 1.6 percent from Friday's close.
That fall puts the index on course for its fourth decline in five days, during which time more than £100 billion has been wiped from its value.
The market rout began with a near 9pc slump in China's main stock index last Tuesday. Combined with worries about a US downturn, that shock sparked a wave of selling in global equity markets, many of which had been trading around record highs.
Since then, the misery has continued almost unabated. A sharp drop in British Airways' shares this morning - sparked by fears of an erosion of the firm's position in the transatlantic market - contributed to renewed declines in London.
The sharp falls in the world's stock markets over the past week have wiped billions of pounds off the value of shares held by pension funds and small investors alike.
The downward slide followed drops in Asian stock markets led by Japan where the Nikkei index fell more than 3pc as a stronger yen hit exporters such as Toyota.
Other stock markets in Asia also fell sharply. Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur Composite Index plunged 6.3pc, erasing its gains for the year.
The Sensitive index in India lost 3.1pc and has dropped 15 percent from its record.
Scott Lim, who helps manage $400 million as chief investment officer at CMS Dresdner Asset Management Sdn. in Kuala Lumpur told Bloomberg: "It's a panic situation among investors and they're selling at ridiculous prices," said. "It's just bad luck. The fundamentals haven't changed."
Other fallers included the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index, which tracks the so-called H shares of Chinese companies in Hong Kong, which dropped 4.6pc. Taiwan's Taiex index declined 3.7pc while key indices in South Korea and Indonesia fell 2.7pc or more.
Over the weekend US Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson sought to calm investors after the sell-off on Wall Street, insisting that the economy is in better shape now than a year ago.
He said: "Markets never move in any one direction forever. Over the last year the Dow's up almost 11pc and I'll take it. There's always a possibility of a downturn. But I don't see it.
"A year ago, when the growth rates were much higher, I was concerned. I said, 'Is this going to be sustainable?' Now I'm looking at it and I'm seeing a situation where it looks like we're successfully making the transition.
"The consumer's strong. Exports have been greater than imports for quarters running and they're adding to our growth," he told ABC television.
I fear this is just the beginning.
IHNFI!
Dow, Nasdaq and S&P currently green...
What's the evidence of a downturn in the US?
And what's earl(oil) doing today?
I'm not surprised.
Just a 10 percent correction.
Panic = Bargains.
My Aussie ETFs ticked down a bit for the first time in weeks, and an Asian closed fund is down 6 percent today.
Soon I'll be going for those bargains.
I hope you are right.
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