It is another day of losses with the FTSE 100 nursing a triple digit drop as we approach the close.
Although this morning saw a slight rally for the UK market, the afternoon has seen these gains eroded with the market nose diving as US markets have once again opened weaker. Individual stocks, banking and mining had a better day than many in the market but this is nothing to get excited about. Many of the stocks in these sectors have set multi-year lows this week so when it comes to the likes of Barclays, RBS, Xstrata and Vedanta it is difficult to see strength at the moment as anything more than a dead cat bounce.
Turning back to the broader markets, it is fair to say that sentiment this week has turned even gloomier than we have been used to of late. As London closes, US markets have once again set multi-year lows with the S&P 500 hitting levels not seen since 1997. Assuming this tone continues – and there is little at the moment to suggest otherwise – when we come back on Monday it is difficult to see the FTSE 100 escaping the week without staging a similar move to fresh lows for this particular down move. It has left many investors now feeling it is a question of when, and not if, the index returns back to the last bear market lows around 3300 from March 2003.
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