FTSE 100 hits three-year high
The FTSE 100 index has hit a three-year high today, with the markets bouncing back in the wake of last week’s devastating terrorist attacks in London.
At one stage on Thursday the FTSE had plummeted by more than 180 points – about 3.5 per cent – as share prices sank and investors recoiled.
However, today the FTSE built on the rally that reduced Thursday’s losses to just 1.4 per cent at the close, hovering at about 5245 at midday – a watermark since the FTSE last hit the heights in 2002.
It is thought that the markets were helped by the decision to switch off many of the automated systems that service the London Stock Exchange (LSE) in the aftermath of the attacks.
The LSE asked its members not to use the service because the systems would instigate automatic sales of shares, potentially triggering an avalanche of negative activity.
