Better year ahead forecast for Footsie

The FTSE 100 Index is forecast to have a better time following this year’s gloomy performance - and end 2002 around the 5,800 mark, City experts said today.

The Index has fallen 17% so far this year from its 6,222.5 start - to 5,159.2 at the close of trading today - and adding to last year’s 10% slump when tech stocks were sold off following the bursting of the dot-com bubble.