FTSE down , Wall Street steady

Heavy losses on Wall Street yesterday had an immediate impact on Tuesday's trading in London as the FTSE fell by more than 60 points in less than two hours.

Wall Street was nervous in early trading but by mid-morning was making small gains. However, while the FTSE recovered some of its losses, it was still down by around 60 points this afternoon

In London, Banking and Pharmaceutical stocks were among the worst hit, but there was good news for Tesco which saw a 14 per cent jump after announcing its half-year profits.

In Japan the Nikkei finished up 175.47 points, also boosted by rumours of rate cuts, the gains would have been greater but for the jitters caused by a bomb alert in the financial district.