Footsie weakened by downbeat Wall Street close

The Footsie 100 Index is down 24 at 3884.7 in mid-morning trading.

Setting the tone was was downbeat finish on Wall Street last night. Both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and tech-laden Nasdaq closed down.

They were hit by profit taking and a gloomy update from fast food giant McDonald's,

A number of heavyweight stocks were weighing on the market, with Shell off 8.5p at 392.25p and rival BP down 6p at 415p.

Drugs group Shire Pharmaceuticals was also lower, down 13.5p at 366.5p, while AstraZeneca shed 42p at 2193p.

In the financial sector, fund manager Amvescap was down 15.5p at 388.5p, HSBC shed 6p at 702p and Barclays lost 5p at 386p.

New economy stocks were also suffering, however, with ITV broadcaster Granada down 3p at 77p,

Financial Times publisher Pearson 22p softer at 597p and magazine group Emap off 19p at 746p.

Some blue-chips were making ground, however, led by battered defence group BAE Systems.

Its shares have tumbled recently on concerns about delays and higher costs associated with two key contracts.