Footsie recovers earlier losses

The FTSE 100 Index is down 6.2 points at 5207.9, although it has recovered from heavier falls earlier in the session.

The Federal Reserve cut interest rates in the US overnight by 50 basis points and Wall Street closed well into positive territory on the back of the announcement.

In the UK, the Monetary Policy Committee is meeting to discuss cutting rates and the Bank of England will make its announcement - widely believed to be a quarter point trim - tomorrow.

Banking stocks are failing to make much ground during the session, with Barclays off 28p at £21.68, Lloyds TSB easing 1½p at 732½p, Royal Bank of Scotland 31p weaker at £17.09 and HBOS down 10p at 832p.

A number of tech stocks are also on the back foot.

Logica has slipped 24½p at 792½p, Sage has shed 4¼p at 229¾p, Cable & Wireless has lost 4½p at 326½p and British Telecom has moved back 2¾p at 340¼p.

Stocks on the up include Scottish Power, which jumped 7% to top the Footsie risers' board after announcing a £1.9bn refinancing of Southern Water. It was up 27½p at 422½p.

Following its lead are rival power groups National Grid, which sparked 8½p at 489½, and Scottish and Southern Energy, which was 12p ahead at 668p.

Outside the FTSE 100, British Energy jumped 4% or 9¾p at 283¾p after saying it had cut half-year losses by £39m, despite battling against lower electricity prices.

Waterford Wedgwood, which is axing 1,400 jobs in response to tough economic conditions, has fallen 10%, or 4p at 38p.