£50bn wiped off British shares

ABOUT £50 billion was wiped off the value of British shares yesterday as the FTSE 100 registered its biggest one-day fall in four weeks.

Analysts said the massive stock sell-off in late trading was led by weakness across the heavyweight oil, telecoms and banking sectors.

At the close the FTSE 100 benchmark index was down 175 points, or 4%. US stocks added to a negative tone, and the Dow Jones industrial average was down 100 points. US technology shares were even weaker, which spilled over to hit European tech and telecoms companies.