Facebook shares reach a record low

Facebook has lost half its value since its May initial public offering, tumbling to a record low after the lifting of restrictions on share sales by its biggest investors.

Shares in the world’s largest social networking service dropped as much as 4.4%, and were down 4.2% to $19.03 at 3.58pm in New York. The number of shares available for trading increased 60% yesterday.

The decline reflects concern that more sales will follow in the coming months as additional lock-ups expire and as the company struggles to wring sales from a growing customer base, Rory Maher, an analyst at Capstone Investments said.