US jitters hit share prices

Techs and telecoms are on the slide as the FTSE-100 Index drops 73.9 points.

The index of the UK's most valuable companies is at 5544.6 after both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Nasdaq Composite recorded heavy losses.

With the US involved in a diplomatic row with China, investors on Wall Street needed little encouragement to embark on another selling spree.

The heaviest falls in London were suffered by software group Logica, down 9%, or 87p, at 883p and computer services company CMG, off 49½p at 520p.

Marconi's heavy losses of recent days continues, falling 22p at 320p, while fellow telecoms equipment firm Spirent has slumped 18¼p at 337¾p.

Telecoms issues are also down, with even Cable & Wireless falling back - despite broadly positive comment on yesterday's PCCW stake disposal.

C&W shares are 10p down at 480p, while BT lost 15p at 485p and Colt Telecom is down 23p at 707p.

Electronic components group Pressac is down 32%, or 31½p, at 66½p after warning its results for the year will be hit by the slowdown in the mobile phone industry.

Gameplay has also fallen 2%, or half a penny, to 23½p, as it says it is considering the future of two of its divisions.

But Canary Wharf is up up 6¾p at 519¾p after signing a lease agreement with Lehman Brothers for the entire space of a building currently under construction in the Docklands.