FTSE stays in red

The London market remained in the red today as investors reacted coolly to a string of updates from blue chips.

The FTSE 100 Index recovered slightly from an earlier 13-point loss to stand 3.3 points off at 4987.1 by mid-morning.

Shire Pharmaceuticals led the FTSE 100 Index away from the 5000 barrier after a safety scare engulfed its best-selling drug.

Shares in Shire topped the Footsie fallers with an 11% or 71p drop to 571p after Canadian regulators ordered the suspension of sales of its Adderall XR drug for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Banking giant Barclays and jet engine maker Rolls-Royce were second and third respectively in the losers list as investors reacted negatively to their annual results.

The Bank of England’s rate decision at lunchtime also added a note of caution to the market, although a rate hold at 4.75% was widely expected.

After falling 60 points yesterday due to poorly performing tech stocks, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was tipped to open up 15 points.

Full year results from ICI supplied the main bright spot for investors in London. The chemicals-to-paints group lifted to the top of the Footsie risers with a 9% or 22.25p gain to 268.25p after profits topped expectations in the fourth quarter.

After rising in early trading, consumer products giant Unilever weakened 4.25p to 511.75p despite announcing the abolition of its dual-chairman structure and the start of a share buyback programme.

Banking giant Barclays also headed down, shedding 9p to 585p – as concerns over the need to make more provisions this year overshadowed annual profits of £4.6bn (€6.7bn), which were in line with expectations.

Shares in jet engine maker Rolls-Royce lost 10p to 261.5p as investors focused on the lack of a dividend increase and a vague outlook, rather than its rising profits and record orders.