Footsie comes under pressure again

The Footsie index of 100 leading stocks has started the second quarter of the year in familiar fashion, with London shares again coming under pressure.

With little corporate news guiding the market, the Footsie is down 61 points after an hour of trading to stand at 5572.7.

A mixture of new and old economy stocks are involved in the fall, led by telecom equipment group Spirent, which is off 15p at 340p; and Shire Pharmaceuticals, down 37p at £10.38.

Railtrack is also on the slide, down 12p at 675p, after unveiling a number of major announcements.

It has announced that it has secured an early release of £1.5 billion of Government funding, but will not be taking up its option to build phase two of the Channel Tunnel high-speed rail link.

In a separate announcement, Stagecoach has been told by the Strategic Rail Authority that it will retain its franchise to run the South West Trains route. Shares in the transport group are ahead nearly 4% or 2p at 59p.

Companies reporting results today include one of the world's richest football clubs, Manchester United.

The Premiership champions lifted both turnover and pre-tax profits in the six months to January 31, but its shares are unmoved at 172p.